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1. The Carnegie Supernova Project II: Observations of the luminous red nova AT 2014ej

   https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202038019  

   Stritzinger, M. D. ; Taddia, F. ; Fraser, M. ; Tauris, T. M. ; Contreras, C. ; Drybye, S. ; Galbany, L. ; Holmbo, S. ; Morrell, N. ; Pastorello, A. ; et al ( July 2020 , Astronomy & Astrophysics)

   null (Ed.)

   We present optical and near-infrared broadband photometry and optical spectra of AT 2014ej from the Carnegie Supernova Project-II. These observations are complemented with data from the CHilean Automatic Supernova sEarch, the Public ESO Spectroscopic Survey of Transient Objects, and from the Backyard Observatory Supernova Search. Observational signatures of AT 2014ej reveal that it is similar to other members of the gap-transient subclass known as luminous red novae (LRNe), including the ubiquitous double-hump light curve and spectral properties similar to that of LRN SN 2017jfs. A medium-dispersion visual-wavelength spectrum of AT 2014ej taken with the Magellan Clay telescope exhibits a P Cygni H α feature characterized by a blue velocity at zero intensity of ≈110 km s −1 and a P Cygni minimum velocity of ≈70 km s −1 . We attribute this to emission from a circumstellar wind. Inspection of pre-outbust Hubble Space Telescope images yields no conclusive progenitor detection. In comparison with a sample of LRNe from the literature, AT 2014ej lies at the brighter end of the luminosity distribution. Comparison of the ultra-violet, optical, infrared light curves of well-observed LRNe to common-envelope evolution models from the literature indicates that the models underpredict the luminosity of the comparison sample at all phases and also produce inconsistent timescales of the secondary peak. Future efforts to model LRNe should expand upon the current parameter space we explore here and therefore may consider more massive systems and a wider range of dynamical timescales. 

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2. Forbidden hugs in pandemic times: II. The luminous red nova variety: AT 2020hat and AT 2020kog

   https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202039953  

   Pastorello, A. ; Valerin, G. ; Fraser, M. ; Elias-Rosa, N. ; Valenti, S. ; Reguitti, A. ; Mazzali, P. A. ; Amaro, R. C. ; Andrews, J. E. ; Dong, Y. ; et al ( March 2021 , Astronomy & Astrophysics)

   null (Ed.)

   We present the results of our monitoring campaigns of the luminous red novae (LRNe) AT 2020hat in NGC 5068 and AT 2020kog in NGC 6106. The two objects were imaged (and detected) before their discovery by routine survey operations. They show a general trend of slow luminosity rise, lasting at least a few months. The subsequent major LRN outbursts were extensively followed in photometry and spectroscopy. The light curves present an initial short-duration peak, followed by a redder plateau phase. AT 2020kog is a moderately luminous event peaking at ∼7 × 10 40 erg s −1 , while AT 2020hat is almost one order of magnitude fainter than AT 2020kog, although it is still more luminous than V838 Mon. In analogy with other LRNe, the spectra of AT 2020kog change significantly with time. They resemble those of type IIn supernovae at early phases, then they become similar to those of K-type stars during the plateau, and to M-type stars at very late phases. In contrast, AT 2020hat already shows a redder continuum at early epochs, and its spectrum shows the late appearance of molecular bands. A moderate-resolution spectrum of AT 2020hat taken at +37 d after maximum shows a forest of narrow P Cygni lines of metals with velocities of 180 km s −1 , along with an H α emission with a full-width at half-maximum velocity of 250 km s −1 . For AT 2020hat, a robust constraint on its quiescent progenitor is provided by archival images of the Hubble Space Telescope. The progenitor is clearly detected as a mid-K type star, with an absolute magnitude of M F 606 W  = −3.33 ± 0.09 mag and a colour of F 606 W  −  F 814 W  = 1.14 ± 0.05 mag, which are inconsistent with the expectations from a massive star that could later produce a core-collapse supernova. Although quite peculiar, the two objects nicely match the progenitor versus light curve absolute magnitude correlations discussed in the literature. 

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3. The search for failed supernovae with the Large Binocular Telescope: N6946-BH1, still no star

   https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stab2620  

   Basinger, C M ; Kochanek, C S ; Adams, S M ; Dai, X ; Stanek, K Z ( October 2021 , Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society)

   ABSTRACT We present new Large Binocular Telescope, Hubble Space Telescope, and Spitzer Space Telescope data for the failed supernova candidate N6946-BH1. We also report an unsuccessful attempt to detect the candidate with Chandra. The ∼300 000 $\, \mathrm{L}_\odot$ red supergiant progenitor underwent an outburst in 2009 and has since disappeared in the optical. In the LBT data from 2008 May through 2019 October, the upper limit on any increase in the R-band luminosity of the source is $2000 \, \mathrm{L}_\odot$. HST and Spitzer observations show that the source continued to fade in the near-IR and mid-IR, fading by approximately a factor of 2 between 2015 October and 2017 September to 2900 $\, \mathrm{L}_\odot$ at Hband (F160W). Models of the spectral energy distribution are inconsistent with a surviving star obscured either by an ongoing wind or dust formed in the transient. The disappearance of N6946-BH1 remains consistent with a failed supernova, but the post-failure phenomenology requires further theoretical study. 

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4. The luminous type IIn supernova SN 2017hcc: Infrared bright, X-ray, and radio faint

   https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stac2915  

   Chandra, Poonam ; Chevalier, Roger A. ; James, Nicholas J. H. ; Fox, Ori D. ( October 2022 , Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society)

   We present multiwavelength observations of supernova (SN) 2017hcc with the Chandra X-ray telescope and the X-ray telescope onboard Swift (Swift-XRT) in X-ray bands, with the Spitzer and the TripleSpec spectrometer in near-infrared (IR) and mid-IR bands and with the Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) for radio bands. The X-ray observations cover a period of 29 to 1310 d, with the first X-ray detection on day 727 with the Chandra. The SN was subsequently detected in the VLA radio bands from day 1000 onwards. While the radio data are sparse, synchrotron-self absorption is clearly ruled out as the radio absorption mechanism. The near- and the mid-IR observations showed that late time IR emission dominates the spectral energy distribution. The early properties of SN 2017hcc are consistent with shock breakout into a dense mass-loss region, with $\dot{M} \sim 0.1$ M⊙ yr−1 for a decade. At few 100 d, the mass-loss rate declined to ∼0.02 M⊙ yr−1, as determined from the dominant IR luminosity. In addition, radio data also allowed us to calculate a mass-loss rate at around day 1000, which is two orders of magnitude smaller than the mass-loss rate estimates around the bolometric peak. These values indicate that the SN progenitor underwent an enhanced mass-loss event a decade before the explosion. The high ratio of IR to X-ray luminosity is not expected in simple models and is possible evidence for an asymmetric circumstellar region.

    

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5. Weak Mass Loss from the Red Supergiant Progenitor of the Type II SN 2021yja

   https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ac75f0  

   Hosseinzadeh, Griffin ; Kilpatrick, Charles D. ; Dong, Yize ; Sand, David J. ; Andrews, Jennifer E. ; Bostroem, K. Azalee ; Janzen, Daryl ; Jencson, Jacob E. ; Lundquist, Michael ; Meza Retamal, Nicolas E. ; et al ( August 2022 , The Astrophysical Journal)

   Abstract We present high-cadence optical, ultraviolet (UV), and near-infrared data of the nearby ( D ≈ 23 Mpc) Type II supernova (SN) 2021yja. Many Type II SNe show signs of interaction with circumstellar material (CSM) during the first few days after explosion, implying that their red supergiant (RSG) progenitors experience episodic or eruptive mass loss. However, because it is difficult to discover SNe early, the diversity of CSM configurations in RSGs has not been fully mapped. SN 2021yja, first detected within ≈ 5.4 hours of explosion, shows some signatures of CSM interaction (high UV luminosity and radio and x-ray emission) but without the narrow emission lines or early light-curve peak that can accompany CSM. Here we analyze the densely sampled early light curve and spectral series of this nearby SN to infer the properties of its progenitor and CSM. We find that the most likely progenitor was an RSG with an extended envelope, encompassed by low-density CSM. We also present archival Hubble Space Telescope imaging of the host galaxy of SN 2021yja, which allows us to place a stringent upper limit of ≲ 9 M ☉ on the progenitor mass. However, this is in tension with some aspects of the SN evolution, which point to a more massive progenitor. Our analysis highlights the need to consider progenitor structure when making inferences about CSM properties, and that a comprehensive view of CSM tracers should be made to give a fuller view of the last years of RSG evolution. 

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