Supernova Remnants and their X-Ray Emission


Book Description

IAU Symposium 101, Supernova Remnants and Their X-ray Emission, was held on the Island of San Giorgio, Venice, 30 August - 2 September 1982. It was co-sponsored by the National Research Council, Italy, the University of Padua, the Observatory of Padua, and the International Astronomical Union, and was hosted by the Cini Foundation. The contents of this volume show the wide range of disciplines that are involved in supernova remnant research. Many new results were presented, not only from the X-ray observations from the Einstein Observatory but also from observations at optical and radio wavelengths. This has led to the stimulation of theoretical work, much of which attempts to accommodate in a more unified way all of these observations. Research on supernova remnants of all ages was reported. Perhaps the most impressive part of all this work is the way in which observations at all wavelengths have extended well outside the Galaxy to other members of the Local Group and beyond. The Symposium was attended by scientists from 15 countries. Twenty five invited papers and sixty-eight shorter contributions were presented during the 4-day meeting. Thirty-three of these shorter contributions were presented in poster sessions. This volume contains almost all (89) of those contributions. They are followed by discussions which took place after each verbal presentation. Since the availability of the discussions was left to the individual contributors, they are not complete, but those contained in this volume convey some idea of the nature of the exchanges.




X-ray Spectra of Supernova Remnants


Book Description

X-ray spectra were obtained from fields in three supernova remnants with the solid state spectrometer of the HEAO 2 satellite. These spectra, which contain lines from K-shell transitions of several abundant elements with atomic numbers between 10 and 22, were compared with various models, including some of spectra that would be produced by adiabatic phase remnants when the time-dependence of the ionization is considered.
















Physics and Evolution of Supernova Remnants


Book Description

Written by a leading expert, this monograph presents recent developments on supernova remnants, with the inclusion of results from various satellites and ground-based instruments. The book details the physics and evolution of supernova remnants, as well as provides an up-to-date account of recent multiwavelength results. Supernova remnants provide vital clues about the actual supernova explosions from X-ray spectroscopy of the supernova material, or from the imprints the progenitors had on the ambient medium supernova remnants are interacting with - all of which the author discusses in great detail. The way in which supernova remnants are classified, is reviewed and explained early on. A chapter is devoted to the related topic of pulsar wind nebulae, and neutron stars associated with supernova remnants. The book also includes an extended part on radiative processes, collisionless shock physics and cosmic-ray acceleration, making this book applicable to a wide variety of astronomical sub-disciplines. With its coverage of fundamental physics and careful review of the state of the field, the book serves as both textbook for advanced students and as reference for researchers in the field.







The Diversity of Neutron Stars


Book Description

Neutron stars are invaluable tools for exploring stellar death, the physics of ultra-dense matter, and the effects of extremely strong magnetic fields. The observed population of neutron stars is dominated by the >1000 radio pulsars, but there are distinct sub-populations that, while fewer in number, can have significant impact on our understanding of the issues mentioned above. These populations are the nearby, isolated neutron stars discovered by ROSAT, and the central compact objects in supernova remnants. The studies of both of these populations have been greatly accelerated in recent years through observations with the Chandra X-ray Observatory and the XMM-Newton telescope. First, we discuss radio, optical, and X-ray observations of the nearby neutron stars aimed at determining their relation to the Galactic neutron star population and at unraveling their complex physical processes by determining the basic astronomical parameters that define the population---distances, ages, and magnetic fields---the uncertainties in which limit any attempt to derive basic physical parameters for these objects. We conclude that these sources are 1e6 year-old cooling neutron stars with magnetic fields above 1e13 Gauss. Second, we describe the hollow supernova remnant problem: why many of the supernova remnants in the Galaxy have no indication of central neutron stars. We have undertaken an X-ray census of neutron stars in a volume-limited sample of Galactic supernova remnants, and from it conclude that either many supernovae do not produce neutron stars contrary to expectation, or that neutron stars can have a wide range in cooling behavior that makes many sources disappear from the X-ray sky.