Revisiting the Classics: On the Optical Colours of Novae as Standard Crayons

Fuente: arXiv
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Autori principali: Craig, Peter, Aydi, Elias, Chomiuk, Laura, Strader, Jay, Stone, Ashley, Sokolovsky, Kirill V., Mukai, Koji, Kawash, Adam, Fló, Joan Guarro, Boussin, Christophe, Charbonnel, Stéphane, Garde, Olivier
Natura: Preprint
Pubblicazione: 2024
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author Craig, Peter
Aydi, Elias
Chomiuk, Laura
Strader, Jay
Stone, Ashley
Sokolovsky, Kirill V.
Mukai, Koji
Kawash, Adam
Fló, Joan Guarro
Boussin, Christophe
Charbonnel, Stéphane
Garde, Olivier
author_facet Craig, Peter
Aydi, Elias
Chomiuk, Laura
Strader, Jay
Stone, Ashley
Sokolovsky, Kirill V.
Mukai, Koji
Kawash, Adam
Fló, Joan Guarro
Boussin, Christophe
Charbonnel, Stéphane
Garde, Olivier
contents We present a systematic study of the $BVRI$ colours of novae over the course of their eruptions. Where possible, interstellar reddening was measured using the equivalent widths of Diffuse Interstellar Bands (DIBs). Some novae lack spectra with sufficient resolution and signal-to-noise ratios; therefore, we supplement as necessary with 3D and 2D dust maps. Utilising only novae with DIB- or 3D-map-based $E(B-V)$, we find an average intrinsic $(B-V)_0$ colour of novae at $V$-band light curve peak of 0.20 with a standard deviation of 0.31, based on 25 novae. When the light curve has declined by 2 magnitudes ($t_2$), we find an average $(B-V)_0 = -0.03$ with a standard deviation of 0.19. These average colours are consistent with previous findings, although the spreads are larger than previously found due to more accurate reddening estimates. We also examined the intrinsic $(R-I)_0$ and $(V-R)_0$ colours across our sample. These colours behave similarly to $(B-V)_0$, except that the $(V-R)_0$ colour gets redder after peak, likely due to the contributions of emission line flux. We searched for correlations between nova colours and $t_2$, peak $V$-band absolute magnitude, and GeV $γ$-ray luminosity, but find no statistically significant correlations. Nova colours can therefore be used as standard ``crayons" to estimate interstellar reddening from photometry alone, with 0.2--0.3 mag uncertainty. We present a novel Bayesian strategy for estimating distances to Galactic novae based on these $E(B-V)$ measurements, independent of assumptions about luminosity, built using 3D dust maps and a stellar mass model of the Milky Way.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2412_15108
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Revisiting the Classics: On the Optical Colours of Novae as Standard Crayons
Craig, Peter
Aydi, Elias
Chomiuk, Laura
Strader, Jay
Stone, Ashley
Sokolovsky, Kirill V.
Mukai, Koji
Kawash, Adam
Fló, Joan Guarro
Boussin, Christophe
Charbonnel, Stéphane
Garde, Olivier
High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Astrophysics of Galaxies
We present a systematic study of the $BVRI$ colours of novae over the course of their eruptions. Where possible, interstellar reddening was measured using the equivalent widths of Diffuse Interstellar Bands (DIBs). Some novae lack spectra with sufficient resolution and signal-to-noise ratios; therefore, we supplement as necessary with 3D and 2D dust maps. Utilising only novae with DIB- or 3D-map-based $E(B-V)$, we find an average intrinsic $(B-V)_0$ colour of novae at $V$-band light curve peak of 0.20 with a standard deviation of 0.31, based on 25 novae. When the light curve has declined by 2 magnitudes ($t_2$), we find an average $(B-V)_0 = -0.03$ with a standard deviation of 0.19. These average colours are consistent with previous findings, although the spreads are larger than previously found due to more accurate reddening estimates. We also examined the intrinsic $(R-I)_0$ and $(V-R)_0$ colours across our sample. These colours behave similarly to $(B-V)_0$, except that the $(V-R)_0$ colour gets redder after peak, likely due to the contributions of emission line flux. We searched for correlations between nova colours and $t_2$, peak $V$-band absolute magnitude, and GeV $γ$-ray luminosity, but find no statistically significant correlations. Nova colours can therefore be used as standard ``crayons" to estimate interstellar reddening from photometry alone, with 0.2--0.3 mag uncertainty. We present a novel Bayesian strategy for estimating distances to Galactic novae based on these $E(B-V)$ measurements, independent of assumptions about luminosity, built using 3D dust maps and a stellar mass model of the Milky Way.
title Revisiting the Classics: On the Optical Colours of Novae as Standard Crayons
topic High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2412.15108