An infrared ring around the magnetar SGR 1900+14

TL;DR

This paper reports the discovery of an infrared ring around the magnetar SGR 1900+14, suggesting a link between magnetars and massive stars, and proposes the ring was formed by dust destruction from a giant flare.

Contribution

It presents the first infrared ring around a magnetar and links it to a giant flare, providing new insights into magnetar environments and origins.

Findings

Infrared ring observed around SGR 1900+14

Ring size matches dust destruction radius from a giant flare

Magnetar associated with a cluster of massive stars

Abstract

Magnetars are a special class of slowly rotating neutron stars with extremely strong magnetic fields -- at least an order of magnitude larger than those of the "normal" radio pulsars. The potential evolutionary links and differences between these two types of objects are still unknown; recent studies, however, have provided circumstantial evidence connecting magnetars with very massive progenitor stars. Here we report the discovery of an infrared elliptical ring or shell surrounding the magnetar SGR 1900+14. The appearance and energetics of the ring are difficult to interpret within the framework of the progenitor's stellar mass loss or the subsequent evolution of the supernova remnant. We suggest instead that a dust-free cavity was produced in the magnetar environment by the giant flare emitted by the source in August 1998. Considering the total energy released in the flare, the theoretical dust--destruction radius matches well with the observed dimensions of the ring. We conclude that SGR 1900+14 is unambiguously associated with a cluster of massive stars, thereby solidifying the link between magnetars and massive stars.