Journal article
Shockingly Bright Warm Carbon Monoxide Molecular Features in the Supernova Remnant Cassiopeia A Revealed by JWST
Astrophysical journal. Letters, v 969(1), pL9
01 Jul 2024
Abstract
We present JWST NIRCam (F356W and F444W filters) and MIRI (F770W) images and NIRSpec Integral Field Unit (IFU) spectroscopy of the young Galactic supernova remnant Cassiopeia A (Cas A) to probe the physical conditions for molecular CO formation and destruction in supernova ejecta. We obtained the data as part of a JWST survey of Cas A. The NIRCam and MIRI images map the spatial distributions of synchrotron radiation, Ar-rich ejecta, and CO on both large and small scales, revealing remarkably complex structures. The CO emission is stronger at the outer layers than the Ar ejecta, which indicates the re-formation of CO molecules behind the reverse shock. NIRSpec-IFU spectra (3-5.5 mu m) were obtained toward two representative knots in the NE and S fields that show very different nucleosynthesis characteristics. Both regions are dominated by the bright fundamental rovibrational band of CO in the two R and P branches, with strong [Ar vi] and relatively weaker, variable strength ejecta lines of [Si ix], [Ca iv], [Ca v], and [Mg iv]. The NIRSpec-IFU data resolve individual ejecta knots and filaments spatially and in velocity space. The fundamental CO band in the JWST spectra reveals unique shapes of CO, showing a few tens of sinusoidal patterns of rovibrational lines with pseudocontinuum underneath, which is attributed to the high-velocity widths of CO lines. Our results with LTE modeling of CO emission indicate a temperature of similar to 1080 K and provide unique insight into the correlations between dust, molecules, and highly ionized ejecta in supernovae and have strong ramifications for modeling dust formation that is led by CO cooling in the early Universe.
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Details
- Title
- Shockingly Bright Warm Carbon Monoxide Molecular Features in the Supernova Remnant Cassiopeia A Revealed by JWST
- Creators
- J. Rho - Seoul National UniversityS. -H. Park - Seoul National UniversityR. Arendt - University of Maryland, Baltimore CountyM. Matsuura - Cardiff UniversityD. Milisavljevic - Purdue University West LafayetteT. Temim - Princeton UniversityI. De Looze - Ghent UniversityW. P. Blair - Johns Hopkins UniversityA. Rest - Space Telescope Science InstituteO. Fox - Space Telescope Science InstituteA. P. Ravi - University of California, DavisB. -C. Koo - Seoul National UniversityM. Barlow - University College LondonA. Burrows - Princeton UniversityR. Chevalier - University of VirginiaG. Clayton - Louisiana State UniversityR. Fesen - Dartmouth CollegeC. Fransson - Stockholm UniversityC. Fryer - Los Alamos National LaboratoryH. L. Gomez - Cardiff UniversityH. -T. Janka - Max Planck Institute for AstrophysicsF. Kirchschlager - Ghent UniversityJ. M. Laming - United States Naval Research LaboratoryS. Orlando - Osservatorio Astronomico di PalermoD. Patnaude - Center for Astrophysics Harvard & SmithsonianG. Pavlov - Pennsylvania State UniversityP. Plucinsky - Center for Astrophysics Harvard & SmithsonianB. Posselt - University of OxfordF. Priestley - Cardiff UniversityJ. Raymond - Center for Astrophysics Harvard & SmithsonianN. Sartorio - Ghent UniversityF. Schmidt - University College LondonP. Slane - Center for Astrophysics Harvard & SmithsonianN. Smith - University of ArizonaN. Sravan - Drexel UniversityJ. Vink - University of AmsterdamK. Weil - Dartmouth CollegeJ. Wheeler - The University of Texas at AustinS. C. Yoon - Seoul National University
- Publication Details
- Astrophysical journal. Letters, v 969(1), pL9
- Publisher
- IOP Publishing Ltd
- Number of pages
- 13
- Grant note
- NASA through the Space Telescope Science Institute; Space Telescope Science Institute 80NSSC23K0749 / Space Telescope Science Institute NASA ADAP EXC-2094-390783311 / German Research Foundation (DFG) through the Collaborative Research Center "Neutrinos and Dark Matter in Astro- and Particle Physics (NDM); German Research Foundation (DFG) JWST grant SFB-1258-283604770 / Office of Naval Research; United States Department of Defense; United States Navy Germany's Excellence Strategy through the Cluster of Excellence ORIGINS 80GSFC21M0002 / NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope NRF-2022H1D3A2A01096434; NRF-2019R1A2C2010885 / Brain Pool visiting program NASA; National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA) JWST-GO-01947.023 / National Research Foundation of Korea
- Resource Type
- Journal article
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- Physics
- Web of Science ID
- WOS:001252873300001
- Scopus ID
- 2-s2.0-85199336968
- Other Identifier
- 991021893615204721
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Web of Science research areas
- Astronomy & Astrophysics