Historical Supernovae and their Remnants

Abstract

AbstractHistorical records are available for nine supernova explosions seen in our Galaxy over the last two millennia. The observations of these ‘historical’ supernovae are very useful for the modern astrophysical interpretation of the remnants of these supernovae. The ages of the remnants of these historical supernovae are definitively known, which greatly aids understanding of the nature of the remnants. Also, the fact that the parent supernova was seen implies that it was relatively nearby in the Galaxy, giving further constraints on the distance, and hence other properties of their remnants. Here I briefly review the historical supernovae in our Galaxy, in the context of our understanding of their remnants from modern observations.