On the Progenitor and Supernova of the SN 2002cx-like Supernova 2008ge
Ryan J. Foley, Armin Rest, Maximilian Stritzinger, Giuliano Pignata,, Joseph P. Anderson, Mario Hamuy, Nidia I. Morrell, Mark M. Phillips, and, Francisco Salgado

TL;DR
This paper investigates the progenitor of SN 2008ge, a supernova similar to SN 2002cx, providing evidence that it was most likely a white dwarf through pre-explosion imaging and spectral analysis.
Contribution
It offers new constraints on the progenitor of SN 2008ge, combining imaging and spectral data to support a white dwarf origin for this peculiar supernova.
Findings
Progenitor likely a white dwarf based on imaging constraints.
Spectroscopy shows strong [Fe II] lines indicating radioactive decay.
Host galaxy shows no signs of massive stars or star formation.
Abstract
We present observations of supernova (SN) 2008ge, which is spectroscopically similar to the peculiar SN 2002cx, and its pre-explosion site that indicate that its progenitor was probably a white dwarf. NGC 1527, the host galaxy of SN 2008ge, is an S0 galaxy with no evidence of star formation or massive stars. Astrometrically matching late-time imaging of SN 2008ge to pre-explosion HST imaging, we constrain the luminosity of the progenitor star. Since SN 2008ge has no indication of hydrogen or helium in its spectrum, its progenitor must have lost its outer layers before exploding, requiring that it be a white dwarf, a Wolf-Rayet star, or a lower-mass star in a binary system. Observations of the host galaxy show no signs of individual massive stars, star clusters, or H II regions at the SN position or anywhere else, making a Wolf-Rayet progenitor unlikely. Late-time spectroscopy of SN…
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