Search

We present the results from multi-wavelength observations of a transient discovered during the follow-up of S191213g, a gravitational wave (GW) event reported by the LIGO-Virgo Collaboration as a possible binary neutron star merger in a low latency search. This search yielded SN2019wxt, a young transient in a galaxy whose sky position (in the 80\% GW contour) and distance ($\sim$150\,Mpc) were plausibly compatible with the localisation uncertainty of the GW event. Initially, the transient's tightly constrained age, its relatively faint peak magnitude ($M_i \sim -16.7$\,mag) and the $r-$band decline rate of $\sim 1$\,mag per 5\,days appeared suggestive of a compact binary merger. However, SN2019wxt spectroscopically resembled a type Ib supernova, and analysis of the optical-near-infrared evolution rapidly led to the conclusion that while it could not be associated with S191213g, it nevertheless represented an extreme outcome of stellar evolution. By modelling the light curve, we estimated an ejecta mass of $\sim 0.1\,M_\odot$, with $^{56}$Ni comprising $\sim 20\%$ of this. We were broadly able to reproduce its spectral evolution with a composition dominated by helium and oxygen, with trace amounts of calcium. We considered various progenitors that could give rise to the observed properties of SN2019wxt, and concluded that an ultra-stripped origin in a binary system is the most likely explanation. Disentangling electromagnetic counterparts to GW events from transients such as SN2019wxt is challenging: in a bid to characterise the level of contamination, we estimated the rate of events with properties comparable to those of SN2019wxt and found that $\sim 1$ such event per week can occur within the typical GW localisation area of O4 alerts out to a luminosity distance of 500\,Mpc, beyond which it would become fainter than the typical depth of current electromagnetic follow-up campaigns., Comment: By the ENGRAVE collaboration (engrave-eso.org). 35 pages, 20 figures, final version accepted by A&A

We present photometric and spectroscopic data on three extragalactic luminous red novae (LRNe): AT2018bwo, AT2021afy, and AT2021blu. AT2018bwo was discovered in NGC45 (at 6.8 Mpc) a few weeks after the outburst onset. During the monitoring period, the transient reached a peak luminosity of 10^40 erg/s. AT2021afy, hosted by UGC10043 (49.2 Mpc), showed a double-peaked light curve, with the two peaks reaching a similar luminosity of 2.1(+-0.6)x10^41 erg/s. For AT2021blu in UGC5829, (8.6 Mpc), the pre-outburst phase was well-monitored by several photometric surveys, and the object showed a slow luminosity rise before the outburst. The light curve of AT2021blu was sampled with an unprecedented cadence until the object disappeared behind the Sun, and it was then recovered at late phases. The light curve of AT2021blu shows a double peak, with a prominent early maximum reaching a luminosity of 6.5x10^40 erg/s, which is half of that of AT2021afy. The spectra of AT2021afy and AT2021blu display the expected evolution for LRNe: a blue continuum dominated by prominent Balmer lines in emission during the first peak, and a redder continuum consistent with that of a K-type star with narrow absorption metal lines during the second, broad maximum. The spectra of AT2018bwo are markedly different, with a very red continuum dominated by broad molecular features in absorption. As these spectra closely resemble those of LRNe after the second peak, AT2018bwo was probably discovered at the very late evolutionary stages. This would explain its fast evolution and the spectral properties compatible with that of an M-type star. From the analysis of deep frames of the LRN sites years before the outburst, and considerations of the light curves, the quiescent progenitor systems of the three LRNe were likely massive, with primaries ranging from 13Mo for AT2018bwo, to 13-18Mo for AT2021blu, and over 40Mo for AT2021afy., Comment: 33 pages, 19 figures, 7 tables (plus 3 available at the CDS). Accepted for publication in A&A

We present the third discovery from the COol Companions ON Ultrawide orbiTS (COCONUTS) program, the COCONUTS-3 system, composed of a young M5 primary star UCAC4 374-046899 and a very red L6 dwarf WISEA J081322.19$-$152203.2. These two objects have a projected separation of 61$''$ (1891 au) and are physically associated given their common proper motions and estimated distances. The primary star, COCONUTS-3A, has a mass of $0.123\pm0.006$ M$_{\odot}$ and we estimate its age as 100 Myr to 1 Gyr based on its kinematics and spectrophotometric properties. We derive its metallicity as $0.21 \pm 0.07$ dex using empirical calibrations established by older higher-gravity M dwarfs and find this [Fe/H] could be slightly underestimated according to PHOENIX models given COCONUTS-3A's younger age. The companion, COCONUTS-3B, has a near-infrared spectral type of L6$\pm$1 INT-G, and we infer physical properties of $T_{\rm eff} = 1362^{+48}_{-73}$ K, $\log{(g)}= 4.96^{+0.15}_{-0.34}$ dex, $R = 1.03^{+0.12}_{-0.06}$ R$_{\rm Jup}$, and $M = 39^{+11}_{-18}$ M$_{\rm Jup}$, using its bolometric luminosity, its host star's age, and hot-start evolution models. We construct cloudy atmospheric model spectra at the evolution-based physical parameters and compare them to COCONUTS-3B's spectrophotometry. We find this companion possesses ample condensate clouds in its photosphere with the data-model discrepancies likely due to the models using an older version of the opacity database. Compared to field-age L6 dwarfs, COCONUTS-3B has fainter absolute magnitudes and a 120 K cooler $T_{\rm eff}$. Also, the J-K color of this companion is among the reddest for ultracool benchmarks with ages older than a few 100 Myr. COCONUTS-3 likely formed in the same fashion as stellar binaries given the companion-to-host mass ratio of 0.3 and represents a valuable benchmark to quantify the systematics of substellar model atmospheres., Comment: Accepted by ApJ. 34 pages including 14 figures and 5 tables

We present an observational study of the luminous red nova (LRN) AT\,2021biy in the nearby galaxy NGC\,4631. The field of the object was routinely imaged during the pre-eruptive stage by synoptic surveys, but the transient was detected only at a few epochs from $\sim 231$\,days before maximum brightness. The LRN outburst was monitored with unprecedented cadence both photometrically and spectroscopically. AT\,2021biy shows a short-duration blue peak, with a bolometric luminosity of $\sim 1.6 \times 10^{41}$\,erg\,s$^{-1}$, followed by the longest plateau among LRNe to date, with a duration of 210\,days. A late-time hump in the light curve was also observed, possibly produced by a shell-shell collision. AT\,2021biy exhibits the typical spectral evolution of LRNe. Early-time spectra are characterised by a blue continuum and prominent H emission lines. Then, the continuum becomes redder, resembling that of a K-type star with a forest of metal absorption lines during the plateau phase. Finally, late-time spectra show a very red continuum ($T_{\mathrm{BB}} \approx 2050$ K) with molecular features (e.g., TiO) resembling those of M-type stars. Spectropolarimetric analysis indicates that AT\,2021biy has local dust properties similar to those of V838\,Mon in the Milky Way Galaxy. Inspection of archival {\it Hubble Space Telescope} data taken on 2003 August 3 reveals a $\sim 20$\,\msun\ progenitor candidate with log\,$(L/{\rm L}_{\odot}) = 5.0$\,dex and $T_{\rm{eff}} = 5900$\,K at solar metallicity. The above luminosity and colour match those of a luminous yellow supergiant. Most likely, this source is a close binary, with a 17--24\,\msun\ primary component., Comment: 21 pages, 14 figures. Accepted by Astronomy and Astrophysics

We present the results from a dense multi-wavelength (optical/UV, near-infrared (IR), and X-ray) follow-up campaign of the nuclear transient AT2017gge, covering a total of 1698 days from the transient's discovery. The bolometric lightcurve, the black body temperature and radius, the broad H and He I $\lambda$5876 emission lines and their evolution with time, are all consistent with a tidal disruption event (TDE) nature. A soft X-ray flare is detected with a delay of $\sim$200 days with respect to the optical/UV peak and it is rapidly followed by the emergence of a broad He II $\lambda$4686 and by a number of long-lasting high ionization coronal emission lines. This indicate a clear connection between a TDE flare and the appearance of extreme coronal line emission (ECLEs). An IR echo, resulting from dust re-radiation of the optical/UV TDE light is observed after the X-ray flare and the associated near-IR spectra show a transient broad feature in correspondence of the He I $\lambda$10830 and, for the first time in a TDE, a transient high-ionization coronal NIR line (the [Fe XIII] $\lambda$10798) is also detected. The data are well explained by a scenario in which a TDE occurs in a gas and dust rich environment and its optical/UV, soft X-ray, and IR emission have different origins and locations. The optical emission may be produced by stellar debris stream collisions prior to the accretion disk formation, which is instead responsible for the soft X-ray flare, emitted after the end of the circularization process., Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRAS

We present panchromatic observations and modeling of calcium-strong supernovae (SNe) 2021gno in the star-forming host galaxy NGC 4165 (D = 30.5 Mpc) and 2021inl in the outskirts of elliptical galaxy NGC 4923 (D = 80 Mpc), both monitored through the Young Supernova Experiment (YSE) transient survey. The multi-color light curves of both SNe show two peaks, the former peak being derived from shock cooling emission (SCE) and/or shock interaction with circumstellar material (CSM). The primary peak in SN 2021gno is coincident with luminous, rapidly decaying X-ray emission ($L_x = 5 \times 10^{41}$ erg s$^{-1}$) detected by Swift-XRT at $\delta t = 1$ day after explosion, this observation being the second ever detection of X-rays from a calcium-strong transient. We interpret the X-ray emission from SN 2021gno in the context of shock interaction with dense CSM that extends to $r < 3 \times 10^{14}$ cm. Based on modeling of the SN 2021gno X-ray spectrum, we calculate a CSM mass range of $M_{\rm CSM} = (0.3 - 1.6) \times 10^{-3}$ M$_{\odot}$ and particle densities of $n = (1-4) \times 10^{10}$ cm$^{-3}$. Radio non-detections of SN 2021gno indicate a low-density environment at larger radii ($r > 10^{16}$ cm) and a progenitor mass loss rate of $\dot{M} < 10^{-4}$ M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$, for $v_w = 500$ km s$^{-1}$. For radiation derived from SCE, modeling of the primary light curve peak in both SNe indicates an extended progenitor envelope mass and radius of $M_e = 0.02 - 0.05$ M$_{\odot}$ and $R_e = 30 - 230$ R$_{\odot}$. The explosion properties of SNe 2021gno and 2021inl suggest progenitor systems containing either a low-mass massive star or a white dwarf (WD), the former being unlikely for either object given the lack of star formation at both explosion sites. Furthermore, the progenitor environments of both SNe are consistent with explosion models for low-mass hybrid He/C/O WD + C/O WD binaries., Comment: 33 pages, 19 figures. Submitted to ApJ. Comments welcome!

Using data from a year-long dedicated campaign to observe bright stars, we study the crosstalk channels present in the GPC1 camera. By analyzing these data, we construct a dataset that checks source stars on almost every CCD of every chip within the camera against all possible crosstalk destinations. We use a clustering algorithm to find potential crosstalk occurrences, and then also check all possible combinations (driven by the hardware layout) by eye. This results in a total of 640 rules, with a flux attenuation factor ranging from 2.5x10$^{2}$ for the bright end to 2.5$\times$10$^{4}$ at the faint end. The average value of m$_{cross}$-m$_{src}\approx$-10.25 corresponds to an attenuating factor of 1.25x10$^{4}$, which produces crosstalk ghosts with an average signal-to-noise ratio of 0.64$\pm$0.1 on the bright images. We find no evidence of crosstalk signals between CCDs not connected in the hardware setup. The distribution of attenuation factors is also found to be dependent on crosstalk movement. A clear dependence on cell column offsets is found, consistent with the idea that the source star charge is progressively attenuated during the traversal of cell readout lines. While we can see the trends, the uncertainties on aperture magnitude measurements are large at this stage., Comment: Accepted by PASP

We present multi-wavelength follow-up observations of the ATLAS discovered faint Iax supernova SN 2020kyg that peaked at an absolute magnitude of $M_g \approx -14.9 \pm 0.2$, making it another member of the faint Iax supernova population. The bolometric light curve requires only $\approx 7 \times 10^{-3}$ M$_{\odot}$ of radioactive $^{56}$Ni, with an ejected mass of $M_{\rm ej} \sim 0.4$ M$_{\odot}$ and a low kinetic energy of $E \approx 0.05 \pm 0.02 \times 10^{51}$ erg. We construct a homogeneous volume-limited sample of 902 transients observed by ATLAS within 100 Mpc during a 3.5 year span. Using this sample, we constrain the rates of faint Iax ($M_r \gtrsim -16$) events within 60 Mpc at $12^{+14}_{-8}\%$ of the SN Ia rate. The overall Iax rate, at $15^{+17}_{-9}\%$ of the Ia rate, is dominated by the low-luminosity events, with luminous SNe Iax ($M_r \lesssim -17.5$) like 2002cx and 2005hk accounting for only $0.9^{+1.1}_{-0.5}\%$ of the Ia rate (a 2$\sigma$ upper limit of approximately 3\%). We favour the hybrid CONe WD + He star progenitor channel involving a failed deflagration of a near Chandrasekhar mass white dwarf, expected to leave a bound remnant and a surviving secondary companion, as a candidate explanation for faint Iax explosions. This scenario requires short delay times, consistent with the observed environments of SNe Iax. Furthermore, binary population synthesis calculations have suggested rates of $1-18\%$ of the SN Ia rate for this channel, consistent with our rate estimates., Comment: Accepted to MNRAS after minor revision

SN 2017jgh is a type IIb supernova discovered by Pan-STARRS during the C16/C17 campaigns of the Kepler/K2 mission. Here we present the Kepler/K2 and ground based observations of SN 2017jgh, which captured the shock cooling of the progenitor shock breakout with an unprecedented cadence. This event presents a unique opportunity to investigate the progenitors of stripped envelope supernovae. By fitting analytical models to the SN 2017jgh lightcurve, we find that the progenitor of SN 2017jgh was likely a yellow supergiant with an envelope radius of $\sim50-290~R_{\odot}$, and an envelope mass of $\sim0-1.7~M_{\odot}$. SN 2017jgh likely had a shock velocity of $\sim7500-10300$ km s$^{-1}$. Additionally, we use the lightcurve of SN 2017jgh to investigate how early observations of the rise contribute to constraints on progenitor models. Fitting just the ground based observations, we find an envelope radius of $\sim50-330~R_{\odot}$, an envelope mass of $\sim0.3-1.7~M_{\odot}$ and a shock velocity of $\sim9,000-15,000$ km s$^{-1}$. Without the rise, the explosion time can not be well constrained which leads to a systematic offset in the velocity parameter and larger uncertainties in the mass and radius. Therefore, it is likely that progenitor property estimates through these models may have larger systematic uncertainties than previously calculated., Comment: 15 pages, 9 figures. Accepted to MNRAS

The steadily increasing luminosity of the LHC requires an upgrade with high-rate and high-resolution detector technology for the inner end cap of the ATLAS muon spectrometer: the New Small Wheels (NSW). In order to achieve the goal of precision tracking at a hit rate of about 15 kHz/cm$^2$ at the inner radius of the NSW, large area Micromegas quadruplets with 100\,\microns spatial resolution per plane have been produced. % IRFU, from the CEA research center of Saclay, is responsible for the production and validation of LM1 Micromegas modules. The construction, production, qualification and validation of the largest Micromegas detectors ever built are reported here. Performance results under cosmic muon characterisation will also be discussed., Comment: To be submitted to NIMA

We present multiwavelength observations of the Type II SN 2020pni. Classified at $\sim 1.3$ days after explosion, the object showed narrow (FWHM $<250\,\textrm{km}\,\textrm{s}^{-1}$) recombination lines of ionized helium, nitrogen, and carbon, as typically seen in flash-spectroscopy events. Using the non-LTE radiative transfer code CMFGEN to model our first high resolution spectrum, we infer a progenitor mass-loss rate of $\dot{M}=(3.5-5.3)\times10^{-3}$ M$_{\odot}$ yr$^{-1}$ (assuming a wind velocity of $v_w=200\,\textrm{km}\,\textrm{s}^{-1}$), estimated at a radius of $R_{\rm in}=2.5\times10^{14}\,\rm{cm}$. In addition, we find that the progenitor of SN 2020pni was enriched in helium and nitrogen (relative abundances in mass fractions of 0.30$-$0.40, and $8.2\times10^{-3}$, respectively). Radio upper limits are also consistent with a dense CSM, and a mass-loss rate of $\dot M>5 \times 10^{-4}\,\rm{M_{\odot}\,yr^{-1}}$. During the first 4 days after first light, we also observe an increase in velocity of the hydrogen lines (from $\sim 250\,\textrm{km}\,\textrm{s}^{-1}$ to $\sim 1000\,\textrm{km}\,\textrm{s}^{-1}$), which suggests a complex CSM. The presence of dense and confined CSM, as well as its inhomogeneous structure, suggest a phase of enhanced mass loss of the progenitor of SN 2020pni during the last year before explosion. Finally, we compare SN 2020pni to a sample of other shock-photoionization events. We find no evidence of correlations among the physical parameters of the explosions and the characteristics of the CSM surrounding the progenitors of these events. This favors the idea that the mass-loss experienced by massive stars during their final years could be governed by stochastic phenomena, and that, at the same time, the physical mechanisms responsible for this mass-loss must be common to a variety of different progenitors., Comment: 19 pages, 14 figures

In this contribution, a new POM-based ionic liquid, namely (P6,6,6,14)4[W10O32], was fully characterized. Its viscosity and its very low dielectric constant make this hybrid ionic liquid suitable to be used as solvent for organic transformations. As proof of concept, this unique ionic liquid combining solvant and catalyst properties was tested for catalytic oxidation of various alcohols and alkenes in presence of H2O2, Comment: New Journal of Chemistry, Royal Society of Chemistry, 2021

We present photometric and spectroscopic observations of Supernova 2020oi (SN 2020oi), a nearby ($\sim$17 Mpc) type-Ic supernova (SN Ic) within the grand-design spiral M100. We undertake a comprehensive analysis to characterize the evolution of SN 2020oi and constrain its progenitor system. We detect flux in excess of the fireball rise model $\delta t \approx 2.5$ days from the date of explosion in multi-band optical and UV photometry from the Las Cumbres Observatory and the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, respectively. The derived SN bolometric luminosity is consistent with an explosion with $M_{\rm ej} = 0.81 \pm 0.03 M_{\odot}$, $E_{k}= 0.79 \pm 0.09 \times 10^{51} \rm{erg} \rm{s}^{-1}$, and $M_{\rm Ni56} = 0.08 \pm 0.02 M_{\odot}$. Inspection of the event's decline reveals the highest $\Delta m_{15,\rm{bol}}$ reported for a stripped-envelope event to date. Modeling of optical spectra near event peak indicates a partially mixed ejecta comparable in composition to the ejecta observed in SN 1994I, while the earliest spectrum shows signatures of a possible interaction with material of a distinct composition surrounding the SN progenitor. Further, Hubble Space Telescope (HST) pre-explosion imaging reveals a stellar cluster coincident with the event. From the cluster photometry, we derive the mass and age of the SN progenitor using stellar evolution models implemented in the BPASS library. Our results indicate that SN 2020oi occurred in a binary system from a progenitor of mass $M_{\rm ZAMS} \approx 9.5 \pm 1.0 M_{\odot}$, corresponding to an age of $27 \pm 7$ Myr. SN 2020oi is the dimmest SN Ic event to date for which an early-time flux excess has been observed, and the first in which an early excess is unlikely to be associated with shock-cooling., Comment: 49 pages, 21 figures; accepted to ApJ

We present the source associations, cross-identifications, and multi-wavelength properties of the faint radio source population detected in the deep tier of the LOFAR Two Metre Sky Survey (LoTSS): the LoTSS Deep Fields. The first LoTSS Deep Fields data release consists of deep radio imaging at 150~MHz of the ELAIS-N1, Lockman Hole, and Bo\"{o}tes fields, down to RMS sensitives of around 20, 22, and 32$~\mu$Jy\,beam$^{-1}$, respectively. These fields are some of the best studied extra-galactic fields in the northern sky, with existing deep, wide-area panchromatic photometry from X-ray to infrared wavelengths, covering a total of $\approx$~26~\mbox{deg$^{2}$}. We first generated improved multi-wavelength catalogues in ELAIS-N1 and Lockman Hole; combined with the existing catalogue for Bo\"{o}tes, we present forced, matched aperture photometry for over 7.2 million sources across the three fields. We identified multi-wavelength counterparts to the radio detected sources, using a combination of the Likelihood Ratio method and visual classification, which greatly enhances the scientific potential of radio surveys and allows for the characterisation of the photometric redshifts and the physical properties of the host galaxies. The final radio-optical cross-matched catalogue consists of 81\,951 radio-detected sources, with counterparts identified and multi-wavelength properties presented for 79\,820 ($>$97\%) sources. We also examine the properties of the host galaxies, and through stacking analysis find that the radio population with no identified counterpart is likely dominated by AGN at $z\sim3-4$. This dataset contains one of the largest samples of radio-selected star-forming galaxies and active galactic nuclei (AGN) at these depths, making it ideal for studying the history of star-formation, and the evolution of galaxies and AGN across cosmic time., Comment: 34 pages, 14 figures and 14 tables. Accepted for publication in A&A special issue. This paper is part of the 1st data release of the LoTSS Deep Fields. Electronic data catalogues will be made available on journal publication

We present parallaxes, proper motions, and $J$-band photometry for 348 L and T dwarfs measured using the wide-field near-infrared camera WFCAM on the United Kingdom Infrared Telescope. This is the largest single batch of infrared parallaxes for brown dwarfs to date. Our parallaxes have a median uncertainty of 3.5 mas, similar to most previous ground-based infrared parallax surveys. Our target list was designed to complete a volume-limited parallax sample of L0-T8 dwarfs out to 25 pc spanning declinations $-30^\circ$ to $+60^\circ$ (68% of the sky). We report the first parallaxes for 165 objects, and we improve on previous measurements for another 53 objects. Our targets include 104 objects (mostly early-L dwarfs) having $Gaia$ DR2 parallax measurements, with which our parallaxes are consistent. We include an extensive comparison of previous literature parallaxes for L and T dwarfs with both our results and $Gaia$ DR2 measurements, identifying systematic offsets for some previous surveys. Our parallaxes confirm that 14 objects previously identified as wide common proper motion companions to main-sequence stars have distances consistent with companionship. We also report new $J_\mathrm{MKO}$ photometry for our targets, including the first measurements for 193 of our targets and improvements over previously published $J_\mathrm{MKO}$ photometry for another 60 targets. Altogether, our parallaxes will enable the first population studies using a volume-limited sample spanning spectral types L0-T8 defined entirely by parallaxes., Comment: Published in AJ. 54 pages, 17 figures, 7 tables. Data for all parallax survey targets can be found in the UltracoolSheet at http://bit.ly/UltracoolSheet , a compilation of 3000+ ultracool dwarfs and imaged exoplanets, including photometry, J2000 positions, parallaxes, proper motions, multiplicity, and spectroscopic classifications from multiple surveys and numerous sources

We present a new volume-limited sample of L0-T8 dwarfs out to 25 pc defined entirely by parallaxes, using our recent measurements from UKIRT/WFCAM along with Gaia DR2 and literature parallaxes. With 369 members, our sample is the largest parallax-defined volume-limited sample of L and T dwarfs to date, yielding the most precise space densities for such objects. We find the local L0-T8 dwarf population includes $5.5\%\pm1.3\%$ young objects ($\lesssim$200 Myr) and $2.6\%\pm1.6\%$ subdwarfs, as expected from recent studies favoring representative ages $\lesssim$4 Gyr for the ultracool field population. This is also the first volume-limited sample to comprehensively map the transition from L to T dwarfs (spectral types $\approx$L8-T4). After removing binaries, we identify a previously unrecognized, statistically significant (>4.4$\sigma$) gap $\approx$0.5 mag wide in $(J-K)_{\rm MKO}$ colors in the L/T transition, i.e., a lack of such objects in our volume-limited sample, implying a rapid phase of atmospheric evolution. In contrast, the most successful models of the L/T transition to date $-$ the "hybrid" models of Saumon & Marley (2008) $-$ predict a pile-up of objects at the same colors where we find a deficit, demonstrating the challenge of modeling the atmospheres of cooling brown dwarfs. Our sample illustrates the insights to come from even larger parallax-selected samples from the upcoming Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) by the Vera Rubin Obsevatory., Comment: AJ, in press. 71 pages, 17 figures, 4 tables. Data for all members of the volume-limited sample can be found in the UltracoolSheet at http://bit.ly/UltracoolSheet , a compilation of 3000+ ultracool dwarfs and imaged exoplanets, including photometry, J2000 positions, parallaxes, proper motions, multiplicity, and spectroscopic classifications from multiple surveys and numerous sources

Time domain science has undergone a revolution over the past decade, with tens of thousands of new supernovae (SNe) discovered each year. However, several observational domains, including SNe within days or hours of explosion and faint, red transients, are just beginning to be explored. Here, we present the Young Supernova Experiment (YSE), a novel optical time-domain survey on the Pan-STARRS telescopes. Our survey is designed to obtain well-sampled $griz$ light curves for thousands of transient events up to $z \approx 0.2$. This large sample of transients with 4-band light curves will lay the foundation for the Vera C. Rubin Observatory and the Nancy Grace Roman Space Telescope, providing a critical training set in similar filters and a well-calibrated low-redshift anchor of cosmologically useful SNe Ia to benefit dark energy science. As the name suggests, YSE complements and extends other ongoing time-domain surveys by discovering fast-rising SNe within a few hours to days of explosion. YSE is the only current four-band time-domain survey and is able to discover transients as faint $\sim$21.5 mag in $gri$ and $\sim$20.5 mag in $z$, depths that allow us to probe the earliest epochs of stellar explosions. YSE is currently observing approximately 750 square degrees of sky every three days and we plan to increase the area to 1500 square degrees in the near future. When operating at full capacity, survey simulations show that YSE will find $\sim$5000 new SNe per year and at least two SNe within three days of explosion per month. To date, YSE has discovered or observed 8.3% of the transient candidates reported to the International Astronomical Union in 2020. We present an overview of YSE, including science goals, survey characteristics and a summary of our transient discoveries to date., Comment: ApJ, in press; more information at https://yse.ucsc.edu/

The classification of supernovae (SNe) and its impact on our understanding of the explosion physics and progenitors have traditionally been based on the presence or absence of certain spectral features. However, current and upcoming wide-field time-domain surveys have increased the transient discovery rate far beyond our capacity to obtain even a single spectrum of each new event. We must therefore rely heavily on photometric classification, connecting SN light curves back to their spectroscopically defined classes. Here we present Superphot, an open-source Python implementation of the machine-learning classification algorithm of Villar et al., and apply it to 2315 previously unclassified transients from the Pan-STARRS1 Medium Deep Survey for which we obtained spectroscopic host-galaxy redshifts. Our classifier achieves an overall accuracy of 82%, with completenesses and purities of >80% for the best classes (SNe Ia and superluminous SNe). For the worst performing SN class (SNe Ibc), the completeness and purity fall to 37% and 21%, respectively. Our classifier provides 1257 newly classified SNe Ia, 521 SNe II, 298 SNe Ibc, 181 SNe IIn, and 58 SLSNe. These are among the largest uniformly observed samples of SNe available in the literature and will enable a wide range of statistical studies of each class., Comment: Updated to match published version in ApJ. Companion paper to Villar et al. (2020). Full machine-readable tables available as ancillary files at right

Automated classification of supernovae (SNe) based on optical photometric light curve information is essential in the upcoming era of wide-field time domain surveys, such as the Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST) conducted by the Rubin Observatory. Photometric classification can enable real-time identification of interesting events for extended multi-wavelength follow-up, as well as archival population studies. Here we present the complete sample of 5,243 "SN-like" light curves (in griz) from the Pan-STARRS1 Medium-Deep Survey (PS1-MDS). The PS1-MDS is similar to the planned LSST Wide-Fast-Deep survey in terms of cadence, filters and depth, making this a useful training set for the community. Using this dataset, we train a novel semi-supervised machine learning algorithm to photometrically classify 2,315 new SN-like light curves with host galaxy spectroscopic redshifts. Our algorithm consists of a random forest supervised classification step and a novel unsupervised step in which we introduce a recurrent autoencoder neural network (RAENN). Our final pipeline, dubbed SuperRAENN, has an accuracy of 87% across five SN classes (Type Ia, Ibc, II, IIn, SLSN-I). We find the highest accuracy rates for Type Ia SNe and SLSNe and the lowest for Type Ibc SNe. Our complete spectroscopically- and photometrically-classified samples break down into: 62.0% Type Ia (1839 objects), 19.8% Type II (553 objects), 4.8% Type IIn (136 objects), 11.7% Type Ibc (291 objects), and 1.6% Type I SLSNe (54 objects). Finally, we discuss how this algorithm can be modified for online LSST data streams., Comment: Submitted to ApJ; Companion paper to Hosseinzadeh et al.; Tables 1 and 2 available on ashleyvillar.com prior to publication

We report photometry and spectroscopy of the outburst of the young stellar object Gaia19bey. We have established the outburst light curve with archival Gaia G, ATLAS Orange, ZTF r-band and Pan-STARRS rizy-filter photometry, showing an outburst of approximately 4 years duration, longer than typical EXors but shorter than FUors. Its pre-outburst SED shows a flat far-infrared spectrum, confirming the early evolutionary state of Gaia19bey and its similarity to other deeply embedded young stars experiencing outbursts. A lower limit to the peak outburst luminosity is approximately 182 L_sun at an assumed distance of 1.4 kpc, the minimum plausible distance. Infrared and optical spectroscopy near maximum light showed an emission line spectrum, including HI lines, strong red CaII emission, other metal emission lines, infrared CO bandhead emission, and a strong infrared continuum. Towards the end of the outburst, the emission lines have all but disappeared and the spectrum has changed into an almost pure continuum spectrum. This indicates a cessation of magnetospheric accretion activity. The near-infrared colors have become redder as Gaia19bey has faded, indicating a cooling of the continuum component. Near the end of the outburst, the only remaining strong emission lines are forbidden shock-excited emission lines. Adaptive optics integral field spectroscopy shows the H_2 1--0 S(1) emission with the morphology of an outflow cavity and the extended emission in the [FeII] line at 1644 nm with the morphology of an edge-on disk. However, we do not detect any large-scale jet from Gaia19bey., Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astronomical Journal

We present new parallax measurements from the CFHT Infrared Parallax Program and the Pan-STARRS 3$\pi$ Steradian Survey for the young ($\approx150-300$ Myr) triple system VHS J125601.92$-$125723.9. This system is composed of a nearly equal-flux binary ("AB") and a wide, possibly planetary-mass companion ("b"). The system's published parallactic distance ($12.7\pm1.0$ pc) implies absolute magnitudes unusually faint compared to known young objects and is in tension with the spectrophotometric distance for the central binary ($17.2\pm2.6$ pc). Our CFHT and Pan-STARRS parallaxes are consistent, and the more precise CFHT result places VHS J1256-1257 at $22.2^{+1.1}_{-1.2}$ pc. Our new distance results in higher values for the companion's mass ($19\pm5$ M$_{\rm Jup}$) and temperature ($1240\pm50$ K), and also brings the absolute magnitudes of all three components into better agreement with known young objects., Comment: Research Notes of the American Astronomical Society, in press. Arxiv version has additional information about the astrometry (text & figure)

We present the first discovery from the COol Companions ON Ultrawide orbiTS (COCONUTS) program, a large-scale survey for wide-orbit planetary and substellar companions. We have discovered a co-moving system COCONUTS-1, composed of a hydrogen-dominated white dwarf (PSO J058.9855+45.4184; $d=31.5$ pc) and a T4 companion (PSO J058.9869+45.4296) at a $40.6''$ (1280 au) projected separation. We derive physical properties for COCONUTS-1B from (1) its near-infrared spectrum using cloudless Sonora atmospheric models, and (2) its luminosity and the white dwarf's age ($7.3_{-1.6}^{+2.8}$ Gyr) using Sonora evolutionary models. The two methods give consistent temperatures and radii, but atmospheric models infer a lower surface gravity and therefore an unphysically young age. Assuming evolutionary model parameters ($T_{\rm eff}=1255^{+6}_{-8}$ K, $\log{g}=5.44^{+0.02}_{-0.03}$ dex, $R=0.789^{+0.011}_{-0.005}$ R$_{\rm Jup}$), we find cloudless model atmospheres have brighter Y- and J-band fluxes than the data, suggesting condensate clouds have not fully dispersed around 1300 K. The W2 flux (4.6 $\mu$m) of COCONUTS-1B is fainter than models, suggesting non-equilibrium mixing of CO. To investigate the gravity dependence of the L/T transition, we compile all 60 known L6-T6 benchmarks and derive a homogeneous set of temperatures, surface gravities, and masses. As is well-known, young, low-gravity late-L dwarfs have significantly fainter, redder near-infrared photometry and $\approx200-300$ K cooler temperatures than old, high-gravity objects. Our sample now reveals such gravity dependence becomes weaker for T dwarfs, with young objects having comparable near-infrared photometry and $\approx100$ K cooler temperatures compared to old objects. Finally, we find that young objects have a larger amplitude J-band brightening than old objects, and also brighten at H band as they cross the L/T transition., Comment: ApJ, in press. 54 pages including 16 figures and 5 tables

On 2019 August 14, the LIGO and Virgo interferometers detected a high-significance event labelled S190814bv. Preliminary analysis of the GW data suggests that the event was likely due to the merger of a compact binary system formed by a BH and a NS. ElectromagNetic counterparts of GRAvitational wave sources at the VEry Large Telescope (ENGRAVE) collaboration members carried out an intensive multi-epoch, multi-instrument observational campaign to identify the possible optical/near infrared counterpart of the event. In addition, the ATLAS, GOTO, GRAWITA-VST, Pan-STARRS and VINROUGE projects also carried out a search on this event. Our observations allow us to place limits on the presence of any counterpart and discuss the implications for the kilonova (KN) possibly generated by this NS-BH merger, and for the strategy of future searches. Altogether, our observations allow us to exclude a KN with large ejecta mass $M\gtrsim 0.1\,\mathrm{M_\odot}$ to a high ($>90\%$) confidence, and we can exclude much smaller masses in a subsample of our observations. This disfavours the tidal disruption of the neutron star during the merger. Despite the sensitive instruments involved in the campaign, given the distance of S190814bv we could not reach sufficiently deep limits to constrain a KN comparable in luminosity to AT 2017gfo on a large fraction of the localisation probability. This suggests that future (likely common) events at a few hundreds Mpc will be detected only by large facilities with both high sensitivity and large field of view. Galaxy-targeted observations can reach the needed depth over a relevant portion of the localisation probability with a smaller investment of resources, but the number of galaxies to be targeted in order to get a fairly complete coverage is large, even in the case of a localisation as good as that of this event., Comment: 52 pages, revised version now accepted for publication in A&A. Abstract abridged to meet arXiv requirements

We present a detailed method to simulating sensor distortions using a photon and electron Monte Carlo method. We use three dimensional electrostatic simulations to parameterize the perturbed electric field profile for non-ideal sensor details. We follow the conversion of simulated photons, and the subsequent response of the converted electrons to the electric field pattern. These non-ideal sensor details can be implemented efficiently in a Monte Carlo approach. We demonstrate that the non-ideal sensor distortions have a variety of observable consequence including the modification of the astrometric pattern, the distortion of the electron diffusion size and shape, and the distortion of flats. We show analytic validation of the diffusion physics, reproduce two kinds of edge distortion, and show qualitative validation of field-free regions, lithography errors, and fringing. We also demonstrate that there are two related effects of doping variation having different observable consequences. We show that field distortions from accumulated electrons lead to intensity-dependent point-spread-functions and the sub-linear variance in flats. The method is implemented in the Photon Simulator (PhoSim) and the code is publically available., Comment: Accepted for publication in ApJ; 13 pages, 12 figures

The Pan-STARRS1 (PS1) $3\pi$ survey is a comprehensive optical imaging survey of three quarters of the sky in the $grizy$ broad-band photometric filters. We present the methodology used in assembling the source classification and photometric redshift (photo-z) catalogue for PS1 $3\pi$ Data Release 1, titled Pan-STARRS1 Source Types and Redshifts with Machine learning (PS1-STRM). For both main data products, we use neural network architectures, trained on a compilation of public spectroscopic measurements that has been cross-matched with PS1 sources. We quantify the parameter space coverage of our training data set, and flag extrapolation using self-organizing maps. We perform a Monte-Carlo sampling of the photometry to estimate photo-z uncertainty. The final catalogue contains $2,902,054,648$ objects. On our validation data set, for non-extrapolated sources, we achieve an overall classification accuracy of $98.1\%$ for galaxies, $97.8\%$ for stars, and $96.6\%$ for quasars. Regarding the galaxy photo-z estimation, we attain an overall bias of $\left<\Delta z_{\mathrm{norm}}\right>=0.0005$, a standard deviation of $\sigma(\Delta z_{\mathrm{norm}})=0.0322$, a median absolute deviation of $\mathrm{MAD}(\Delta z_{\mathrm{norm}})=0.0161$, and an outlier fraction of $O=1.89\%$. The catalogue will be made available as a high-level science product via the Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes at https://doi.org/10.17909//t9-rnk7-gr88., Comment: 12 pages, 6 figures. Submitted to MNRAS

The intra-night trajectories of asteroids can be approximated by straight lines, and so are their intra-night detections. Therefore, the Hough transform, a line detecting algorithm, can be used to connect the line-up detections to find asteroids. We applied this algorithm to a high-cadence Pan-STARRS 1 (PS1) observation, which was originally designed to collect asteroid light curves for rotation period measurements (Chang et al., 2019). The algorithm recovered most of the known asteroids in the observing fields and, moreover, discovered 3574 new asteroids with magnitude mainly of 21.5 < w_p1 < 22.5 mag. This magnitude range is equivalent to sub-kilometer main-belt asteroids (MBAs), which usually lack of rotation period measurements due to their faintness. Using the light curves of the 3574 new asteroids, we obtained 122 reliable rotation periods, of which 13 are super-fast rotators (SRFs; i.e., rotation period of < 2 hr). The required cohesion to survive these SFRs range from tens to thousands of Pa, a value consistent with the known SFRs and the regolith on the Moon and Mars. The higher chance of discovering SFRs here suggests that sub-kilometer MBAs probably harbor more SFRs., Comment: Submitted to AJ, at 1st revise

We present the results of the monitoring campaign of the Type IIn supernova (SN) 2018cnf (aka ASASSN-18mr). It was discovered about 10 days before the maximum light (on MJD = 58293.4+-5.7 in the V band, with MV = -18.13+-0.15 mag). The multiband light curves show an immediate post-peak decline with some minor luminosity fluctuations, followed by a flattening starting about 40 days after maximum. The early spectra are relatively blue and show narrow Balmer lines with P Cygni profiles. Additionally, Fe II, O I, He I and Ca II are detected. The spectra show little evolution with time, with intermediate-width features becoming progressively more prominent, indicating stronger interaction of the SN ejecta with the circumstellar medium. The inspection of archival images from the Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System (Pan-STARRS) survey has revealed a variable source at the SN position, with a brightest detection in December 2015 at Mr = -14.66+-0.17 mag. This was likely an eruptive phase from the massive progenitor star started from at least mid-2011, and that produced the circumstellar environment within which the star exploded as a Type IIn SN. The overall properties of SN 2018cnf closely resemble those of transients such as SN 2009ip. This similarity favours a massive hypergiant, perhaps a luminous blue variable, as progenitor for SN 2018cnf., Comment: 19 pages, 8 figures, 3 tables. Published in A&A

We introduce a new technique to estimate the comet nuclear size frequency distribution (SFD) that combines a cometary activity model with a survey simulation and apply it to 150 long period comets (LPC) detected by the Pan-STARRS1 near-Earth object survey. The debiased LPC size-frequency distribution is in agreement with previous estimates for large comets with nuclear diameter $>\sim 1$~km but we measure a significant drop in the SFD slope for small objects with diameters $<1$~km and approaching only $100$~m diameter. Large objects have a slope $\alpha_{big} = 0.72 \pm 0.09 (stat.) \pm 0.15 (sys.)$ while small objects behave as $\alpha_{small} = 0.07 \pm 0.03 (stat.) \pm 0.09 (sys.)$ where the SFD is $\propto 10^{\alpha H_N}$ and $H_N$ represents the cometary nuclear absolute magnitude. The total number of LPCs that are $>1$~km diameter and have perihelia $q<10$~au is $0.46 \pm 0.15 \times 10^9$ while there are only $2.4 \pm 0.5 (stat.) \pm 2 (sys.) \times 10^9$ objects with diameters $>100$~m due to the shallow slope of the SFD for diameters $<1$~m. We estimate that the total number of `potentially active' objects with diameters $\ge 1$~km in the Oort cloud, objects that would be defined as LPCs if their perihelia evolved to $<10$~au, is $(1.5\pm1)\times10^{12}$ with a combined mass of $1.3\pm0.9 \, M_{Earth}$. The debiased LPC orbit distribution is broadly in agreement with expectations from contemporary dynamical models but there are discrepancies that could point towards a future ability to disentangle the relative importance of stellar perturbations and galactic tides in producing the LPC population., Comment: accepted for publication in Icarus

Photometric classification of supernovae (SNe) is imperative as recent and upcoming optical time-domain surveys, such as the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope (LSST), overwhelm the available resources for spectrosopic follow-up. Here we develop a range of light curve classification pipelines, trained on 518 spectroscopically-classified SNe from the Pan-STARRS1 Medium-Deep Survey (PS1-MDS): 357 Type Ia, 93 Type II, 25 Type IIn, 21 Type Ibc, and 17 Type I SLSNe. We present a new parametric analytical model that can accommodate a broad range of SN light curve morphologies, including those with a plateau, and fit this model to data in four PS1 filters (griz). We test a number of feature extraction methods, data augmentation strategies, and machine learning algorithms to predict the class of each SN. Our best pipelines result in 90% average accuracy, 70% average purity, and 80% average completeness for all SN classes, with the highest success rates for Type Ia SNe and SLSNe and the lowest for Type Ibc SNe. Despite the greater complexity of our classification scheme, the purity of our Type Ia SN classification, 95%, is on par with methods developed specifically for Type Ia versus non-Type Ia binary classification. As the first of its kind, this study serves as a guide to developing and training classification algorithms for a wide range of SN types with a purely empirical training set, particularly one that is similar in its characteristics to the expected LSST main survey strategy. Future work will implement this classification pipeline on ~3000 PS1/MDS light curves that lack spectroscopic classification., Comment: 20 pages; 14 figures; published in ApJ

In order to identify the sources of the observed diffuse high-energy neutrino flux, it is crucial to discover their electromagnetic counterparts. IceCube began releasing alerts for single high-energy ($E > 60$ TeV) neutrino detections with sky localisation regions of order 1 deg radius in 2016. We used Pan-STARRS1 to follow-up five of these alerts during 2016-2017 to search for any optical transients that may be related to the neutrinos. Typically 10-20 faint ($m < 22.5$ mag) extragalactic transients are found within the Pan-STARRS1 footprints and are generally consistent with being unrelated field supernovae (SNe) and AGN. We looked for unusual properties of the detected transients, such as temporal coincidence of explosion epoch with the IceCube timestamp. We found only one transient that had properties worthy of a specific follow-up. In the Pan-STARRS1 imaging for IceCube-160427A (probability to be of astrophysical origin of $\sim$50 %), we found a SN PS16cgx, located at 10.0' from the nominal IceCube direction. Spectroscopic observations of PS16cgx showed that it was an H-poor SN at z = 0.2895. The spectra and light curve resemble some high-energy Type Ic SNe, raising the possibility of a jet driven SN with an explosion epoch temporally coincident with the neutrino detection. However, distinguishing Type Ia and Type Ic SNe at this redshift is notoriously difficult. Based on all available data we conclude that the transient is more likely to be a Type Ia with relatively weak SiII absorption and a fairly normal rest-frame r-band light curve. If, as predicted, there is no high-energy neutrino emission from Type Ia SNe, then PS16cgx must be a random coincidence, and unrelated to the IceCube-160427A. We find no other plausible optical transient for any of the five IceCube events observed down to a 5$\sigma$ limiting magnitude of $m \sim 22$ mag, between 1 day and 25 days after detection., Comment: 20 pages, 6 figures, accepted to A&A

We present the implementation and use of algorithms for matching point-spread functions (PSFs) within the Pan-STARRS Image Processing Pipeline (IPP). PSF-matching is an essential part of the IPP for the detection of supernovae and asteroids, but it is also used to homogenize the PSF of inputs to stacks, resulting in improved photometric precision compared to regular coaddition, especially in data with a high masked fraction. We report our experience in constructing and operating the image subtraction pipeline, and make recommendations about particular basis functions for constructing the PSF-matching convolution kernel, determining a suitable kernel, parallelisation and quality metrics. We introduce a method for reliably tracking the noise in an image throughout the pipeline, using the combination of a variance map and a `covariance pseudo-matrix'. We demonstrate these algorithms with examples from both simulations and actual data from the Pan-STARRS1 telescope.

A class of asteroids, called large super-fast rotators (large SFRs), have rotation periods shorter than 2 hours and diameters larger than ~ 0.3 km. They pose challenges to the usual interior rubble-pile structure unless a relatively high bulk density is assumed. So far, only six large SFRs have been found. Therefore, we present a survey of asteroid rotation period using Pan-STARRS 1 telescopes during 2016 October 26 to 31 to search more large SFRs and study their properties. A total of 876 reliable rotation periods are measured, among which seven are large SFRs, thereby increasing the inventory of known large SFRs. These seven newly discovered large SFRs have diverse colors and locations in the main asteroid belt, suggesting that the taxonomic tendency and the location preference in the inner main belt of the six perviously known large SFRs could be a bias due to various observational limits. Interestingly, five out of the seven newly discovered large SFRs are mid main-belt asteroids. Considering the rare discovery rates of large SFR in the previously similar surveys (Chang et al., 2015, 2016) and the survey condition in this work, the chance of detecting a large SFR in the inner main belt seems to be relatively low. This probably suggests that the inner main belt harbors less large SFRs than the mid main belt. From our survey, we also found the drop in number appearing at f > 5 rev/day on the spin-rate distribution for the outer main-belt asteroids of D < 3 km, which was reported for the inner and mid main belt by (Chang et al., 2015, 2016)., Comment: Accepted by ApJS on Jan 24, 2019

We present the first release of the MaNGA Stellar Library (MaStar), which is a large, well-calibrated, high-quality empirical library covering the wavelength range of 3,622-10,354A at a resolving power of R~1800. The spectra were obtained using the same instrument as used by the Mapping Nearby Galaxies at Apache Point Observatory (MaNGA) project, by piggybacking on the SDSS-IV/APOGEE-2N observations. Compared to previous empirical libraries, the MaStar library will have a higher number of stars and a more comprehensive stellar-parameter coverage, especially of cool dwarfs, low-metallicity stars, and stars with different [alpha/Fe], achieved by a sophisticated target selection strategy that takes advantage of stellar-parameter catalogs from the literature. This empirical library will provide a new basis for stellar population synthesis, and is particularly well-suited for stellar-population analysis of MaNGA galaxies. The first version of the library contains 8646 high-quality per-visit spectra for 3321 unique stars. Compared to photometry, the relative flux calibration of the library is accurate to 3.9% in g-r, 2.7% in r-i, and 2.2% in i-z. The data are released as part of Sloan Digital Sky Survey Data Release 15. We expect the final release of the library to contain more than 10,000 stars., Comment: 36 pages, 15 figures, 8 tables, including 2 large electronic tables. Published in ApJ