Data-driven approach for modeling the temporal and spectral evolution of kilonova systematic uncertainties

Fuente: arXiv
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Main Authors: Jhawar, Sahil, Wouters, Thibeau, Pang, Peter T. H., Bulla, Mattia, Coughlin, Michael W., Dietrich, Tim
Format: Preprint
Published: 2024
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author Jhawar, Sahil
Wouters, Thibeau
Pang, Peter T. H.
Bulla, Mattia
Coughlin, Michael W.
Dietrich, Tim
author_facet Jhawar, Sahil
Wouters, Thibeau
Pang, Peter T. H.
Bulla, Mattia
Coughlin, Michael W.
Dietrich, Tim
contents Kilonovae, possible electromagnetic counterparts to neutron star mergers, provide important information about high-energy transient phenomena and, in principle, also allow us to obtain information about the source properties responsible for powering the kilonova. Unfortunately, numerous uncertainties exist in kilonova modeling that, at the current stage, hinder accurate predictions. Hence, one has to account for possible systematic modeling uncertainties when interpreting the observed transients. In this work, we provide a data-driven approach to account for time-dependent and filter-dependent uncertainties in kilonova models. Through a suite of tests, we find that the most reliable recovery of the source parameters and description of the observational data can be obtained through a combination of kilonova models with time- and filter-dependent systematic uncertainties. We apply our new method to analyze AT2017gfo. While recovering a total ejecta mass consistent with previous studies, our approach gives insights into the temporal and spectral evolution of the systematic uncertainties of this kilonova. We consistently find a systematic error below $1$ mag between $1$ to $5$ days after the merger. Our work addresses the need for early follow-up of kilonovae at earlier times, and improved modeling of the kilonova at later times, to reduce the uncertainties outside of this time window.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2410_21978
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Data-driven approach for modeling the temporal and spectral evolution of kilonova systematic uncertainties
Jhawar, Sahil
Wouters, Thibeau
Pang, Peter T. H.
Bulla, Mattia
Coughlin, Michael W.
Dietrich, Tim
High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
Kilonovae, possible electromagnetic counterparts to neutron star mergers, provide important information about high-energy transient phenomena and, in principle, also allow us to obtain information about the source properties responsible for powering the kilonova. Unfortunately, numerous uncertainties exist in kilonova modeling that, at the current stage, hinder accurate predictions. Hence, one has to account for possible systematic modeling uncertainties when interpreting the observed transients. In this work, we provide a data-driven approach to account for time-dependent and filter-dependent uncertainties in kilonova models. Through a suite of tests, we find that the most reliable recovery of the source parameters and description of the observational data can be obtained through a combination of kilonova models with time- and filter-dependent systematic uncertainties. We apply our new method to analyze AT2017gfo. While recovering a total ejecta mass consistent with previous studies, our approach gives insights into the temporal and spectral evolution of the systematic uncertainties of this kilonova. We consistently find a systematic error below $1$ mag between $1$ to $5$ days after the merger. Our work addresses the need for early follow-up of kilonovae at earlier times, and improved modeling of the kilonova at later times, to reduce the uncertainties outside of this time window.
title Data-driven approach for modeling the temporal and spectral evolution of kilonova systematic uncertainties
topic High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2410.21978