An Updated Detection Pipeline for Precursor Emission in Type II Supernova 2020tlf

TL;DR

This paper introduces an improved photometric detection pipeline for pre-supernova emission, applied to SN 2020tlf, providing more accurate pre-explosion data and challenging previous blackbody modeling assumptions.

Contribution

The paper presents a new, robust photometric pipeline for detecting pre-supernova emission and revises previous analyses of SN 2020tlf with more reliable data.

Findings

Fewer pre-SN detections at phases > -100 days compared to prior work.

Progenitor luminosity of ~10^40 erg s^-1 confirmed before explosion.

Discourages use of blackbody modeling for pre-explosion spectral energy distribution.

Abstract

We present a new photometric pipeline for the detection of pre-supernova (pre-SN) emission in the Young Supernova Experiment (YSE) sky survey. The method described is applied to SN 2020tlf, a type II SN (SN II) with precursor emission in the last ~100 days before first light. We re-analyze the YSE griz-band light curves of SN 2020tlf and provide revised pre-explosion photometry that includes a robust list of confident detection and limiting magnitudes. Compared to the results of Jacobson-Galan et al. 2022a, this new analysis yields fewer total r/i/z-band pre-SN detections at phases > -100 days. Furthermore, we discourage the use of the blackbody modeling of the pre-explosion spectral energy distribution, the pre-SN bolometric light curve and the blackbody model parameters presented in Jacobson-Galan et al. 2022a. Nevertheless, binned photometry of SN 2020tlf confirms a consistent progenitor luminosity of ~10$^{40}$ erg s$^{-1}$ before explosion.