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Tycho Brahe's 1572 supernova as a standard type Ia as revealed by its light-echo spectrum.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  19052622     Owner:  NLM     Status:  PubMed-not-MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
Type Ia supernovae are thermonuclear explosions of white dwarf stars in close binary systems. They play an important role as cosmological distance indicators and have led to the discovery of the accelerated expansion of the Universe. Among the most important unsolved questions about supernovae are how the explosion actually proceeds and whether accretion occurs from a companion or by the merging of two white dwarfs. Tycho Brahe's supernova of 1572 (SN 1572) is thought to be one of the best candidates for a type Ia supernova in the Milky Way. The proximity of the SN 1572 remnant has allowed detailed studies, such as the possible identification of the binary companion, and provides a unique opportunity to test theories of the explosion mechanism and the nature of the progenitor. The determination of the hitherto unknown spectroscopic type of this supernova is crucial in relating these results to the diverse population of type Ia supernovae. Here we report an optical spectrum of Tycho's supernova near maximum brightness, obtained from a scattered-light echo more than four centuries after the direct light from the explosion swept past the Earth. We find that SN 1572 belongs to the majority class of normal type Ia supernovae.
Authors:
Oliver Krause; Masaomi Tanaka; Tomonori Usuda; Takashi Hattori; Miwa Goto; Stephan Birkmann; Ken'ichi Nomoto
Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Nature     Volume:  456     ISSN:  1476-4687     ISO Abbreviation:  Nature     Publication Date:  2008 Dec 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2008-12-04     Completed Date:  2009-01-06     Revised Date:  -    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  0410462     Medline TA:  Nature     Country:  England    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  617-9     Citation Subset:  -    
Affiliation:
Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie, Königstuhl 17, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany. krause@mpia.de
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Comment In:
Nature. 2008 Dec 4;456(7222):587-9   [PMID:  19052616 ]

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