CSS 161010: A Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transient with Broad Blueshifted Hydrogen Lines

Abstract We present ultraviolet, optical, and near-infrared photometric and optical spectroscopic observations of the luminous fast blue optical transient (LFBOT) CSS 161010:045834–081803 (CSS 161010). The transient was found in a low-redshift ( z = 0.033) dwarf galaxy. The light curves of CSS 161010 are characterized by an extremely fast evolution and blue colors. The V -band light curve shows that CSS 161010 reaches an absolute peak of <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:msubsup> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi mathvariant="italic">M</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>V</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>max</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> </mml:msubsup> <mml:mo>=</mml:mo> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> <mml:mn>20.66</mml:mn> <mml:mo>±</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.06</mml:mn> </mml:math> mag in 3.8 days from the start of the outburst. After maximum, CSS 161010 follows a power-law decline ∝ t −2.8±0.1 in all optical bands. These photometric properties are comparable to those of well-observed LFBOTs such as AT 2018cow, AT 2020mrf, and AT 2020xnd. However, unlike these objects, the spectra of CSS 161010 show a remarkable transformation from a blue and featureless continuum to spectra dominated by very broad, entirely blueshifted hydrogen emission lines with velocities of up to 10% of the speed of light. The persistent blueshifted emission and the lack of any emission at the rest wavelength of CSS 161010 are unique features not seen in any transient before CSS 161010. The combined observational properties of CSS 161010 and its M * ∼ 10 8 M ⊙ dwarf galaxy host favor the tidal disruption of a star by an intermediate-mass black hole as its origin.

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Publication Details

Journal
The Astrophysical Journal
Published
2024-12-01
DOI
https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ad89a5
Citations
10
Primary Topic
Advanced Optical Sensing Technologies
Type
article
Field-Weighted Citation Impact
5.06

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article

CSS 161010: A Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transient with Broad Blueshifted Hydrogen Lines

E. Kankare, T. Wevers, M. Fraser, A. Pastorello et al.
10 citations
The Astrophysical Journal
Advanced Optical Sensing Technologies
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article

CSS 161010: A Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transient with Broad Blueshifted Hydrogen Lines

E. Kankare, T. Wevers, M. Fraser, A. Pastorello, Raya Dastidar, Ł. Wyrzykowski, M. Gromadzki, P. G. Jonker, Juna A. Kollmeier, P. Väisänen, S. González–Gaitán, Subo Dong, C. S. Kochanek, S. Benetti, P. Charalampopoulos, A. Somero, S. Mattila, M. Stritzinger, Peter Lundqvist, S. Bose, D. A. H. Buckley, D. Bersier, T. Reynolds, Mridweeka Singh, R. Kotak, D. L. Coppejans, T. Kangas, G. Terreran, Stephen B Potter, Jack M. M. Neustadt, Kuntal Misra, C. P. Gutiérrez, A. Hamanowicz, E. Romero‐Colmenero, Luc Dessart, N. Elias–Rosa, Anjasha Gangopadhyay, Bing Zhang, Ping Chen, J. L. Prieto, J. Mao
article en
10 citations

Abstract

Abstract We present ultraviolet, optical, and near-infrared photometric and optical spectroscopic observations of the luminous fast blue optical transient (LFBOT) CSS 161010:045834–081803 (CSS 161010). The transient was found in a low-redshift ( z = 0.033) dwarf galaxy. The light curves of CSS 161010 are characterized by an extremely fast evolution and blue colors. The V -band light curve shows that CSS 161010 reaches an absolute peak of <mml:math xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" overflow="scroll"> <mml:msubsup> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi mathvariant="italic">M</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>V</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> <mml:mrow> <mml:mi>max</mml:mi> </mml:mrow> </mml:msubsup> <mml:mo>=</mml:mo> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> <mml:mn>20.66</mml:mn> <mml:mo>±</mml:mo> <mml:mn>0.06</mml:mn> </mml:math> mag in 3.8 days from the start of the outburst. After maximum, CSS 161010 follows a power-law decline ∝ t −2.8±0.1 in all optical bands. These photometric properties are comparable to those of well-observed LFBOTs such as AT 2018cow, AT 2020mrf, and AT 2020xnd. However, unlike these objects, the spectra of CSS 161010 show a remarkable transformation from a blue and featureless continuum to spectra dominated by very broad, entirely blueshifted hydrogen emission lines with velocities of up to 10% of the speed of light. The persistent blueshifted emission and the lack of any emission at the rest wavelength of CSS 161010 are unique features not seen in any transient before CSS 161010. The combined observational properties of CSS 161010 and its M * ∼ 10 8 M ⊙ dwarf galaxy host favor the tidal disruption of a star by an intermediate-mass black hole as its origin.

The Astrophysical JournalVol. 977(2)
University of Copenhagen (DK), Aarhus University (DK)
Science and Technology Facilities Council
Openalex Percentile: Top 4%
Advanced Optical Sensing Technologies
5.06
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