Circumstellar Interaction in SN 1993J

Abstract

The radio and X-ray observations of SN 1993J during the first year can be consistently explained as a result of interaction of the expanding ejecta with a circumstellar medium. The density of the circumstellar gas can be deduced from the free-free absorption of the radio emission and from the X-ray luminosity. During the first two weeks, both sets of observations indicate a mass loss rate of $\sim 4\EE{-5} \Msun ~\rm yr^{-1}$ for a wind velocity of $10 \kms$. The subsequent radio and X-ray observations indicate a density gradient $\propto r^{-s}$, with $1.5 \lsim s \lsim 1.7$, as opposed to the $r^{-2}$ gradient expected for a steady, spherically symmetric wind. This may either be caused by a variation of the mass loss rate from the progenitor system, or by a non-spherically symmetric geometry. To explain the properties of the X-ray emission, a steep density gradient in the ejecta is needed. During the first months most of the observed X-ray emission originates from the circumstellar shock, which is adiabatic, while the reverse shock is radiative. To avoid excessive Comptonization in the X-ray range collisionless heating must be ineffective. The soft X-rays observed at 220 days probably originate from the reverse shock. The ionization and temperature structures of the circumstellar gas are calculated; we find that the temperature is in excess of $10^5 \rm~K$ and the medium is nearly completely ionized by the shock radiation after the formation of the shocks. Preacceleration of the circumstellar gas by the radiation from the outbreak can explain