Hubble Space Telescope Observations of Mira Variables in the SN Ia Host NGC 1559: An Alternative Candle to Measure the Hubble Constant

By Caroline D. Huang, A. Riess, W. Yuan, Lucas Macri, N. Zakamska, S. Casertano, P. Whitelock, S. Hoffmann, A. Filippenko, D. Scolnic. Astrophysical Journal, 2019

167 citations recorded by the source corpus.

We present year-long, near-infrared Hubble Space Telescope (HST) WFC3 observations used to search for Mira variables in NGC 1559, the host galaxy of the Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) SN 2005df. This is the first dedicated search for Miras, highly evolved low-mass stars, in an SN Ia host, and subsequently the first calibration of the SN Ia luminosity using Miras in a role historically played by Cepheids. We identify a sample of 115 O-rich Miras with P < 400 days based on their light-curve properties. We find that the scatter in the Mira period–luminosity relation (PLR) is comparable to Cepheid PLRs seen in SN Ia host galaxies. Using a sample of O-rich Miras discovered in NGC 4258 with HSTF160W and its maser distance, we measure a distance modulus for NGC 1559 of (statistical) (systematic) mag. Based on the light curve of the normal, well-observed, low-reddening SN 2005df, we obtain a measurement of the fiducial SN Ia absolute magnitude of mag. With the Hubble diagram of SNe Ia we find km s−1 Mpc−1. Combining the calibration from the NGC 4258 megamaser and the Large Magellanic Cloud detached eclipsing binaries gives a best value of km s−1 Mpc−1. This result is within 1σ of the Hubble constant derived using Cepheids and multiple calibrating SNe Ia. This is the first of four expected calibrations of the SN Ia luminosity from Miras that should reduce the error in H0 via Miras to ∼3%. In light of the present Hubble tension and JWST, Miras have utility in the extragalactic distance scale to check Cepheid distances or calibrate nearby SNe in early-type host galaxies that would be unlikely targets for Cepheid searches.

Subfields: Astronomy and Astrophysics, Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Instrumentation

View Paper: https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/5e67bf927bdf4d8e78807ad48813129657d2b905

How researchers see this paper

The researchers whose trusted networks rank it highest, strongest advocate first. Every researcher gets a different order.

In Astronomy and Astrophysics

1. A. Riess
2. V. Poulin
3. Tristan L. Smith
4. Tanvi Karwal
5. S. Vagnozzi
6. A. Filippenko
7. S. Jha
8. D. Scolnic

In Electrical and Electronic Engineering

1. A. Riess
2. A. Filippenko
3. S. Jha
4. S. Vagnozzi

In Instrumentation

1. A. Riess
2. V. Poulin
3. S. Jha
4. A. Filippenko
5. D. Scolnic
6. Tanvi Karwal
7. M. Toomey
8. Tristan L. Smith

Citations in the corpus

• Cosmology Intertwined II: The Hubble Constant Tension (2020, unknown): “[31] C.”
• Early dark energy does not restore cosmological concordance (2020, methodology): “Another alternative approach replaces the Cepheids with Miras, variable red giant stars, leading to H0 = 73.3 ± 3.9 km/s/Mpc (Huang et al. (2019)).”
• The expansion of the Universe is faster than expected (2020, methodology): “9 km s-1 Mpc-1 using new HST observations and the previously discussed geometric distances [8].”
• A Comprehensive Measurement of the Local Value of the Hubble Constant with 1 km s−1 Mpc−1 Uncertainty from the Hubble Space Telescope and the SH0ES Team (2021, background): “Other primary distance indicators that have been measured in the hosts of SNe Ia to determine H0 include the tip of the red giant branch (TRGB; Freedman et al. 2019, hereafter F19) and Mira variable stars (Huang et al. 2020).”
• A buyer’s guide to the Hubble constant (2021, unknown): “Given imaginative observation strategies and careful population analysis, the issues above can be addressed, and modern studies now exist for Miras in the LMC (Yuan et al. 2017), NGC 4258 (Huang et al. 2018), and the SN Ia host NGC 1559 (Huang et al. 2020).”
• The Ups and Downs of Early Dark Energy solutions to the Hubble tension: A review of models, hints and constraints circa 2023 (2023, methodology): “Additional methods intended to calibrate SNIa at large distances include: surface brightness fluctuations of galaxies [30], MIRAS [31], or the Baryonic Tully Fisher relation [32].”