An upper limit on the contribution of accreting white dwarfs to the type Ia supernova rate

Marat Gilfanov () and Ákos Bogdán
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Marat Gilfanov: Max Planck Institut für Astrophysik, Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 1, 85741 Garching, Germany
Ákos Bogdán: Max Planck Institut für Astrophysik, Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 1, 85741 Garching, Germany

Nature, 2010, vol. 463, issue 7283, 924-925

Abstract: Supernova precursors Type Ia supernovae are used as standard candles to determine the cosmological distance scale, yet the exact nature of their progenitors is still not known. Two models compete with each other with alternating success. Type Ia supernovae are thought to result from thermonuclear explosions of white dwarf stars, triggered either by the merger of two white dwarfs in a binary system or when a white dwarf reaches a critical size due to gradual accretion of material from a companion. On the accretion scenario, the expanding star is predicted to emit strongly at X-ray wavelengths. Now, based on Chandra satellite X-ray observations of nearby galaxies, Marat Gilfanov and Ákos Bogdán estimate that the accretion scenario can account for no more than about 5% of type Ia supernovae in young galaxies — though the situation may be different in late-type galaxies.

Date: 2010
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DOI: 10.1038/nature08685

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