SN 2011fe: A Laboratory for Testing Models of Type Ia Supernovae

TL;DR

SN 2011fe, the nearest and earliest discovered Type Ia supernova, offers a detailed case study to test explosion models, progenitor scenarios, and the reliability of SNe Ia as standard candles using extensive multi-wavelength data.

Contribution

This review compiles comprehensive multi-wavelength observations of SN 2011fe to evaluate explosion mechanisms, progenitor nature, and standard candle accuracy, highlighting its potential as a laboratory for Type Ia supernova models.

Findings

Consistent with a CO white dwarf explosion via deflagration-to-detonation transition

Minimal evidence for a non-degenerate companion star

Possible merger of two white dwarfs as progenitor scenario

Abstract

SN 2011fe is the nearest supernova of Type Ia (SN Ia) discovered in the modern multi-wavelength telescope era, and it also represents the earliest discovery of a SN Ia to date. As a normal SN Ia, SN 2011fe provides an excellent opportunity to decipher long-standing puzzles about the nature of SNe Ia. In this review, we summarize the extensive suite of panchromatic data on SN 2011fe, and gather interpretations of these data to answer four key questions: 1) What explodes in a SN Ia? 2) How does it explode? 3) What is the progenitor of SN 2011fe? and 4) How accurate are SNe Ia as standardizeable candles? Most aspects of SN 2011fe are consistent with the canonical picture of a massive CO white dwarf undergoing a deflagration-to-detonation transition. However, there is minimal evidence for a non-degenerate companion star, so SN 2011fe may have marked the merger of two white dwarfs.