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Is supernova 1987A a stripped asymptotic-branch giant in a binary system?

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Abstract

We propose that the progenitor of supernova 1987A was a previously undetected red star in orbit about a blue supergiant (star 1 in the field of Sk–692021,2). The progenitor was the remnant of an asymptotic-branch giant that had lost most of its hydrogen-rich envelope to its blue companion by type C mass transfer3. A detailed evolutionary model strongly supports the feasibility of our proposition. We find that the original mass of the supernova precursor was 10–15M⊙ (unless a large fraction of its mass was ejected from the binary system), and its final mass, just before the supernova event, was 3–6M⊙. The system remained bound, with a new orbital period of 3–10 yr and an eccentricity of 0.1–0.4. Our picture can provide plausible qualitative explanations for several anomalies in the observational properties of this supernova.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Physics, Center for Space Research, and Center for Theoretical Physics, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, Massachusetts, 02139, USA

    P. C. Joss, Ph. Podsiadlowski, J. J. L. Hsu & S. Rappaport

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  1. P. C. Joss
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  2. Ph. Podsiadlowski
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  3. J. J. L. Hsu
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  4. S. Rappaport
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Joss, P., Podsiadlowski, P., Hsu, J. et al. Is supernova 1987A a stripped asymptotic-branch giant in a binary system?. Nature 331, 237–240 (1988). https://doi.org/10.1038/331237a0

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