The Radio Remnant of Supernova 1987A - A Broader View

TL;DR

This paper reviews three decades of radio observations of Supernova 1987A, highlighting its evolving morphology and providing insights into supernova remnant particle acceleration and magnetic field amplification.

Contribution

It offers a comprehensive overview of radio data from multiple telescopes, illustrating the remnant's evolution and advancing understanding of supernova remnant physics.

Findings

Rapid morphological changes observed in the remnant.

The remnant has entered a new evolutionary phase.

Radio spectrum data spans from 70 MHz to 700 GHz.

Abstract

Supernova remnants (SNRs) are powerful particle accelerators. As a supernova (SN) blast wave propagates through the circumstellar medium (CSM), electrons and protons scatter across the shock and gain energy by entrapment in the magnetic field. The accelerated particles generate further magnetic field fluctuations and local amplification, leading to cosmic ray production. The wealth of data from Supernova 1987A is providing a template of the SN-CSM interaction, and an important guide to the radio detection and identification of core-collapse SNe based on their spectral properties. Thirty years after the explosion, radio observations of SNR 1987A span from 70 MHz to 700 GHz. We review extensive observing campaigns with the Australia Telescope Compact Array (ATCA) and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), and follow-ups with other radio telescopes. Observations across the radio spectrum indicate rapid changes in the remnant morphology, while current ATCA and ALMA observations show that the SNR has entered a new evolutionary phase.