The explosion jets of the core-collapse supernova remnant Circinus X-1

TL;DR

This paper presents evidence that rings observed in the Circinus X-1 supernova remnant result from jets during the explosion, supported by hydrodynamical simulations, and links these features to the jittering-jets explosion mechanism.

Contribution

The study provides the first hydrodynamical simulation evidence supporting jet-driven ring formation in supernova remnants within the jittering-jets explosion framework.

Findings

Rings in Circinus X-1 remnant are likely formed by jets during explosion.

Hydrodynamical simulations demonstrate feasibility of jet-induced ring formation.

Similarity of features across multiple supernova remnants supports the jittering-jets model.

Abstract

We propose that the recently analyzed opposite rings in the Circinus X-1 (Cir X-1) core collapse supernova (CCSN) remnant resulted from a pair of opposite jets at the final phases of the jet-driven explosion process of the progenitor of Cir X-1. We point out the similarity of the rings in the Cir X-1 CCSN remnant to a ring in the Cygnus Loop CCSN remnant. While the X-ray binary system Cir X-1 actively launches jets, no such activity exists in the Cygnus Loop. In both CCSN remnants, we attribute the rings to jets associated with the explosion process, within the framework of the jittering-jets explosion mechanism (JJEM). We also identify such a ring in the CCSN remnant 107.7-5.1, which we also attribute to exploding jets. We conduct three-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations of late jets inside an exploding massive stellar core, and demonstrate the feasibility of this scenario for ring formation. The Cir X-1 CCSN remnant has a large blowout, similar to that of the Cygnus Loop and to a large protrusion in the CCSN remnant G0.9+0.1. Based on these similarities, we suggest that other exploding jets inflated the blowout of the Cir X-1 nebula, consistent with an earlier claim regarding the formation of the blowout of the Cygnus Loop. We identify a point-symmetric structure in the Cir X-1 CCSN remnant, strengthening the JJEM. This study further demonstrates that the JJEM is a successful explosion mechanism to analyze CCSNe and CCSN remnants.