Testing Progenitor Models using the Late-time Light Curve of Supernova 1992A

Authors:
Publisher website
Google Scholar
Abstract
The dominant radioactive energy source powering SN Ia light curves is expected to switch from the decay of 56Co to 57Co at very late epochs. We use archival Hubble Space Telescope images of SN1992A obtained more than 900 days after explosion to constrain its cobalt isotopic abundance ratio and compare it to the well-studied event SN2011fe. We confirm the 57Co/56Co ratio for SN2011fe of 0.026 ± 0.004 found by Shappee et al., consistent with a “double degenerate” progenitor scenario. For SN1992A, we find a ratio of 0.034 ± 0.010, but the large uncertainty does not allow us to differentiate between progenitor models.

This publication has 11 references indexed in Scilit: