Katsura Matsumoto

Abstract We present a detailed investigation of photometric, spectroscopic, and polarimetric observations of the Type II SN 2023ixf. Earlier studies have provided compelling evidence for a delayed shock breakout from a confined dense circumstellar matter (CSM) enveloping the progenitor star. The temporal evolution of polarization in the SN 2023ixf phase revealed three distinct peaks in polarization evolution at 1.4 days, 6.4 days, and 79.2 days, indicating an asymmetric dense CSM, an aspherical shock front and clumpiness in the low-density extended CSM, and an aspherical inner ejecta/He-core. SN 2023ixf displayed two dominant axes, one along the CSM-outer ejecta and the other along the inner ejecta/He-core, showcasing the independent origin of asymmetry in the early and late evolution. The argument for an aspherical shock front is further strengthened by the presence of a high-velocity broad absorption feature in the blue wing of the Balmer features in addition to the P-Cygni absorption post-16 days. Hydrodynamical light-curve modeling indicated a progenitor mass of 10 M _⊙ with a radius of 470 R _⊙ and explosion energy of 2 × 10⁵¹ erg, along with 0.06 M _⊙ of ⁵⁶ Ni, though these properties are not unique due to modeling degeneracies. The modeling also indicated a two-zone CSM: a confined dense CSM extending up to 5 × 10¹⁴ cm with a mass-loss rate of 10⁻² M _⊙ yr⁻¹ and an extended CSM spanning from 5 × 10¹⁴ to at least 10¹⁶ cm with a mass-loss rate of 10⁻⁴ M _⊙ yr⁻¹, both assuming a wind-velocity of 10 km s⁻¹. The early-nebular phase observations display an axisymmetric line profile of [O i], redward attenuation of the emission of Hα post 125 days, and flattening in the Ks-band, marking the onset of dust formation.

Abstract We report the study of a huge optical intraday flare on 2021 November 12 at 2 a.m. UT in the blazar OJ 287. In the binary black hole model, it is associated with an impact of the secondary black hole on the accretion disk of the primary. Our multifrequency observing campaign was set up to search for such a signature of the impact based on a prediction made 8 yr earlier. The first I-band results of the flare have already been reported by Kishore et al. (2024). Here we combine these data with our monitoring in the R-band. There is a big change in the R–I spectral index by 1.0 ± 0.1 between the normal background and the flare, suggesting a new component of radiation. The polarization variation during the rise of the flare suggests the same. The limits on the source size place it most reasonably in the jet of the secondary BH. We then ask why we have not seen this phenomenon before. We show that OJ 287 was never before observed with sufficient sensitivity on the night when the flare should have happened according to the binary model. We also study the probability that this flare is just an oversized example of intraday variability using the Krakow data set of intense monitoring between 2015 and 2023. We find that the occurrence of a flare of this size and rapidity is unlikely. In machine-readable Tables 1 and 2, we give the full orbit-linked historical light curve of OJ 287 as well as the dense monitoring sample of Krakow.

Abstract The classical nova V339 Del 2013 is characterized by a 1.5 mag dip of the V light curve owing to a dust shell formation, with which soft X-ray emissions coexist. We present a Strömgren y-band light curve, which represents continuum emission, not influenced by strong [O iii] emission lines. The y light curve monotonically decreases in marked contrast to the V light curve that shows a 1.5 mag dip. We propose a multiwavelength light-curve model that reproduces the y and V light curves as well as the gamma-ray and X-ray light curves. In our model, a strong shock arises far outside the photosphere after optical maximum, because later ejected matter collides with earlier ejected gas. Our shocked shell model explains optical emission lines, Hα, hard X-ray, and gamma-ray fluxes. A dust shell forms behind the shock that suppresses [O iii]. This low flux of [O iii] shapes a 1.5 mag drop in the V light curve. Then, the V flux recovers with an increasing contribution from [O iii] lines, while the y flux does not. However, the optical depth of the dust shell is too small to absorb the photospheric (X-ray) emission of the white dwarf. This is the reason that a dust shell and soft X-ray radiation coexist. We determined the white dwarf mass to be M_WD = 1.25 ± 0.05 M_☉ and the distance modulus in the V band to be (m − M)_V = 12.2 ± 0.2; the distance is d = 2.1 ± 0.2 kpc for the reddening of E(B − V) = 0.18.

ABSTRACT In 2022 the BL Lac object S4 0954+65 underwent a major variability phase, reaching its historical maximum brightness in the optical and γ-ray bands. We present optical photometric and polarimetric data acquired by the Whole Earth Blazar Telescope (WEBT) Collaboration from 2022 April 6 to July 6. Many episodes of unprecedented fast variability were detected, implying an upper limit to the size of the emitting region as low as $10^{-4}$ parsec. The WEBT data show rapid variability in both the degree and angle of polarization. We analyse different models to explain the polarization behaviour in the framework of a twisting jet model, which assumes that the long-term trend of the flux is produced by variations in the emitting region viewing angle. All the models can reproduce the average trend of the polarization degree, and can account for its general anticorrelation with the flux, but the dispersion of the data requires the presence of intrinsic mechanisms, such as turbulence, shocks, or magnetic reconnection. The WEBT optical data are compared to γ-ray data from the Fermi satellite. These are analysed with both fixed and adaptive binning procedures. We show that the strong correlation between optical and γ-ray data without measurable delay assumes different slopes in faint and high brightness states, and this is compatible with a scenario where in faint states we mainly see the imprint of the geometrical effects, while in bright states the synchrotron self-Compton process dominates.