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5d ago

Astronomers Capture First Visual Proof of Double-Detonation in Type Ia Supernova Remnant

Discovery of two concentric calcium shells in SNR 0509-67.5 validates a sub-Chandrasekhar double-detonation as a viable explosion pathway, setting the stage for new surveys of young supernova remnants.

Credit: ESO/P. Das et al. Background stars (Hubble): K. Noll et al.

Overview

  • Researchers used the VLT’s Multi-Unit Spectroscopic Explorer to map calcium in SNR 0509-67.5 and identified two distinct shells matching double-detonation predictions.
  • The Nature Astronomy paper published July 2 confirms that a helium-shell ignition can trigger a secondary core blast in white dwarfs below the Chandrasekhar mass limit.
  • SNR 0509-67.5, located about 160,000 light-years away in the Large Magellanic Cloud, retains the calcium “fingerprint” of sequential blasts centuries after the explosion.
  • This conclusive evidence resolves a key uncertainty in Type Ia supernova mechanisms and may enhance the precision of these events as cosmic distance markers.
  • Astronomers are now extending spectral surveys to other young Type Ia remnants to gauge how common the double-detonation pathway is and refine luminosity models.