Diffuse Galactic antimatter from faint thermonuclear supernovae in old stellar populations

Roland M. Crocker; Ashley J. Ruiter; Ivo R. Seitenzahl; Fiona H. Panther; Stuart Sim; Holger Baumgardt; Anais Möller; David M. Nataf; Lilia Ferrario; J. J. Eldridge; Martin White; Brad E. Tucker; Felix Aharonian

doi:10.1038/s41550-017-0135

Diffuse Galactic antimatter from faint thermonuclear supernovae in old stellar populations

Roland M. Crocker^*, Ashley J. Ruiter, Ivo R. Seitenzahl, Fiona H. Panther, Stuart Sim, Holger Baumgardt, Anais Möller, David M. Nataf, Lilia Ferrario, J. J. Eldridge, Martin White, Brad E. Tucker, Felix Aharonian

^*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journal › Article › peer-review

41 Citations (Scopus)

Abstract

Our Galaxy hosts the annihilation of a few 10 43 low-energy positrons every second. Radioactive isotopes capable of supplying such positrons are synthesized in stars, stellar remnants and supernovae. For decades, however, there has been no positive identification of a main stellar positron source, leading to suggestions that many positrons originate from exotic sources like the Galaxy's central supermassive black hole or dark matter annihilation. Here we show that a single type of transient source, deriving from stellar populations of age 3-6 Gyr and yielding â 1/40.03 M âŠ(tm) of the positron emitter 44 Ti, can simultaneously explain the strength and morphology of the Galactic positron annihilation signal and the Solar System abundance of the 44 Ti decay product 44 Ca. This transient is likely the merger of two low-mass white dwarfs, observed in external galaxies as the sub-luminous, thermonuclear supernova known as SN 1991bg-like.

Original language	English
Article number	0135
Journal	Nature Astronomy
Volume	1
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-017-0135
Publication status	Published - 2 Mar 2017

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title = "Diffuse Galactic antimatter from faint thermonuclear supernovae in old stellar populations",

abstract = "Our Galaxy hosts the annihilation of a few 10 43 low-energy positrons every second. Radioactive isotopes capable of supplying such positrons are synthesized in stars, stellar remnants and supernovae. For decades, however, there has been no positive identification of a main stellar positron source, leading to suggestions that many positrons originate from exotic sources like the Galaxy's central supermassive black hole or dark matter annihilation. Here we show that a single type of transient source, deriving from stellar populations of age 3-6 Gyr and yielding {\^a} 1/40.03 M {\^a}{\v S}(tm) of the positron emitter 44 Ti, can simultaneously explain the strength and morphology of the Galactic positron annihilation signal and the Solar System abundance of the 44 Ti decay product 44 Ca. This transient is likely the merger of two low-mass white dwarfs, observed in external galaxies as the sub-luminous, thermonuclear supernova known as SN 1991bg-like.",

author = "Crocker, {Roland M.} and Ruiter, {Ashley J.} and Seitenzahl, {Ivo R.} and Panther, {Fiona H.} and Stuart Sim and Holger Baumgardt and Anais M{\"o}ller and Nataf, {David M.} and Lilia Ferrario and Eldridge, {J. J.} and Martin White and Tucker, {Brad E.} and Felix Aharonian",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2017 Macmillan Publishers Limited, part of Springer Nature.",

year = "2017",

month = mar,

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doi = "10.1038/s41550-017-0135",

language = "English",

volume = "1",

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T1 - Diffuse Galactic antimatter from faint thermonuclear supernovae in old stellar populations

AU - Crocker, Roland M.

AU - Ruiter, Ashley J.

AU - Seitenzahl, Ivo R.

AU - Panther, Fiona H.

AU - Sim, Stuart

AU - Baumgardt, Holger

AU - Möller, Anais

AU - Nataf, David M.

AU - Ferrario, Lilia

AU - Eldridge, J. J.

AU - White, Martin

AU - Tucker, Brad E.

AU - Aharonian, Felix

PY - 2017/3/2

Y1 - 2017/3/2

N2 - Our Galaxy hosts the annihilation of a few 10 43 low-energy positrons every second. Radioactive isotopes capable of supplying such positrons are synthesized in stars, stellar remnants and supernovae. For decades, however, there has been no positive identification of a main stellar positron source, leading to suggestions that many positrons originate from exotic sources like the Galaxy's central supermassive black hole or dark matter annihilation. Here we show that a single type of transient source, deriving from stellar populations of age 3-6 Gyr and yielding â 1/40.03 M âŠ(tm) of the positron emitter 44 Ti, can simultaneously explain the strength and morphology of the Galactic positron annihilation signal and the Solar System abundance of the 44 Ti decay product 44 Ca. This transient is likely the merger of two low-mass white dwarfs, observed in external galaxies as the sub-luminous, thermonuclear supernova known as SN 1991bg-like.

AB - Our Galaxy hosts the annihilation of a few 10 43 low-energy positrons every second. Radioactive isotopes capable of supplying such positrons are synthesized in stars, stellar remnants and supernovae. For decades, however, there has been no positive identification of a main stellar positron source, leading to suggestions that many positrons originate from exotic sources like the Galaxy's central supermassive black hole or dark matter annihilation. Here we show that a single type of transient source, deriving from stellar populations of age 3-6 Gyr and yielding â 1/40.03 M âŠ(tm) of the positron emitter 44 Ti, can simultaneously explain the strength and morphology of the Galactic positron annihilation signal and the Solar System abundance of the 44 Ti decay product 44 Ca. This transient is likely the merger of two low-mass white dwarfs, observed in external galaxies as the sub-luminous, thermonuclear supernova known as SN 1991bg-like.

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DO - 10.1038/s41550-017-0135

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VL - 1

JO - Nature Astronomy

JF - Nature Astronomy

M1 - 0135

ER -

Diffuse Galactic antimatter from faint thermonuclear supernovae in old stellar populations

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