Chandra astrometry sets a tight upper limit to the proper motion of SGR 1900+14

TL;DR

Using precise Chandra astrometry over five years, the study places a strict upper limit on SGR 1900+14's proper motion, challenging its association with the nearby supernova remnant G42.8+0.6 and supporting a different origin scenario.

Contribution

The paper provides the first tight proper motion upper limit for SGR 1900+14, refining its possible origins and challenging previous association hypotheses.

Findings

Proper motion upper limit of 70 mas/yr at 3-sigma confidence

SGR 1900+14 unlikely to be associated with G42.8+0.6

Supports SGR origin within a nearby star cluster

Abstract

The soft gamma-ray repeater (SGR) SGR 1900+14 lies a few arcminutes outside the edge of the shell supernova remnant (SNR) G42.8+0.6. A physical association between the two systems has been proposed - for this and other SGR-SNR pairs - based on the expectation of high space velocities for SGRs in the framework of the magnetar model. The large angular separation between the SGR and the SNR center, coupled with the young age of the system, suggest a test of the association with a proper motion measurement. We used a set of three Chandra/ACIS observations of the field spanning 5 years to perform accurate relative astrometry in order to measure the possible angular displacement of the SGR as a function of time. Our investigation sets a 3-sigma upper limit of 70 mas/yr to the overall proper motion of the SGR. Such a value argues against an association of SGR 1900+14 with G42.8+0.6 and adds further support to the mounting evidence for an origin of the SGR within a nearby, compact cluster of massive stars.