The VLT-FLAMES Tarantula Survey: The fastest rotating O-type star and shortest period LMC pulsar - remnants of a supernova disrupted binary?

TL;DR

This paper reports the discovery of VFTS102, an extremely rapidly rotating massive star likely formed from binary interaction and supernova disruption, and discusses its relation to a nearby X-ray pulsar.

Contribution

It presents the spectroscopic analysis of the fastest rotating O-type star and proposes a binary origin involving supernova disruption.

Findings

VFTS102 has a rotational velocity over 500 km/s.

VFTS102 is a probable runaway star.

VFTS102 is spatially close to the X-ray pulsar PSR J0537-6910.

Abstract

We present a spectroscopic analysis of an extremely rapidly rotating late O-type star, VFTS102, observed during a spectroscopic survey of 30 Doradus. VFTS102 has a projected rotational velocity larger than 500\kms\ and probably as large as 600\kms; as such it would appear to be the most rapidly rotating massive star currently identified. Its radial velocity differs by 40\kms\ from the mean for 30 Doradus, suggesting that it is a runaway. VFTS102 lies 12 pcs from the X-ray pulsar PSR J0537-6910 in the tail of its X-ray diffuse emission. We suggest that these objects originated from a binary system with the rotational and radial velocities of VFTS102 resulting from mass transfer from the progenitor of PSR J0537-691 and the supernova explosion respectively.