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Main Authors: Chen, Xuepeng, Wang, Dong, He, Qianru, Feng, Jiancheng, Zhang, Shiyu, Sun, Li, Su, Yang
Format: Preprint
Published: 2025
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Online Access:https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.12622
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author Chen, Xuepeng
Wang, Dong
He, Qianru
Feng, Jiancheng
Zhang, Shiyu
Sun, Li
Su, Yang
author_facet Chen, Xuepeng
Wang, Dong
He, Qianru
Feng, Jiancheng
Zhang, Shiyu
Sun, Li
Su, Yang
contents Using the PMO 13.7m telescope, we present large-field and high-sensitivity CO(1-0) line observations toward the Crab Nebula, in order to better understand the interstellar gas environment of this well-known historical supernova remnant. The CO observations show molecular clouds toward the Crab Nebula at a velocity range from about 0 to 16 km/s. After checking the CO spectra, we find shocked signatures in the clouds extending at a velocity of roughly [5, 11] km/s. These shocked molecular clouds, with an angular distance of about 0.4-0.5 degree toward the Crab Nebula, are located at the shell of a bubble discovered in the GALFA-HI (and HI4PI) images at the same velocity range. The dimension of the bubble is roughly 2.3$\times$2.6 degree and the expansion velocity is about 5 km/s. The kinetic energy referred from the shocked molecular clouds (roughly 3.5$\times$10$^{51}$ erg), together with the HI bubble, support the picture that the Crab Nebula belongs to a typical core-collapse supernova remnant. Nevertheless, due to the large uncertainty in the distance measurement, further observations are needed to verify the physical association between the shocked molecular clouds and the Crab Nebula.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2509_12622
institution arXiv
publishDate 2025
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Large-field CO(1-0) observations toward the Galactic historical supernova remnants: shocked molecular clouds toward the Crab Nebula
Chen, Xuepeng
Wang, Dong
He, Qianru
Feng, Jiancheng
Zhang, Shiyu
Sun, Li
Su, Yang
Astrophysics of Galaxies
Using the PMO 13.7m telescope, we present large-field and high-sensitivity CO(1-0) line observations toward the Crab Nebula, in order to better understand the interstellar gas environment of this well-known historical supernova remnant. The CO observations show molecular clouds toward the Crab Nebula at a velocity range from about 0 to 16 km/s. After checking the CO spectra, we find shocked signatures in the clouds extending at a velocity of roughly [5, 11] km/s. These shocked molecular clouds, with an angular distance of about 0.4-0.5 degree toward the Crab Nebula, are located at the shell of a bubble discovered in the GALFA-HI (and HI4PI) images at the same velocity range. The dimension of the bubble is roughly 2.3$\times$2.6 degree and the expansion velocity is about 5 km/s. The kinetic energy referred from the shocked molecular clouds (roughly 3.5$\times$10$^{51}$ erg), together with the HI bubble, support the picture that the Crab Nebula belongs to a typical core-collapse supernova remnant. Nevertheless, due to the large uncertainty in the distance measurement, further observations are needed to verify the physical association between the shocked molecular clouds and the Crab Nebula.
title Large-field CO(1-0) observations toward the Galactic historical supernova remnants: shocked molecular clouds toward the Crab Nebula
topic Astrophysics of Galaxies
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2509.12622