A Catalog of Galactic Supernova Remnants and Supernova Remnant Candidates from the EMU/POSSUM Radio Sky Surveys. I.

Abstract

We use data from the Evolutionary Map of the Universe (EMU) and Polarization Sky Survey of the Universe’s Magnetism (POSSUM) radio southern sky surveys, conducted with the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) to compile a catalog of Galactic supernova remnants (SNRs) and candidate SNRs within the region of 277 5 ≤ ℓ ≤ 311 7 Galactic longitude, ∣b∣ ≤ 5 4 Galactic latitude, as well as an additional field along the Galactic plane, approximately 315 5 ≤ ℓ ≤ 323 0 Galactic longitude, −4.5 ≤ b ≤ 1.5 Galactic latitude. In the areas studied, there are 44 known SNRs and 46 SNR candidates that have been previously identified in the radio. We confirm eight of these candidates as SNRs based on evidence of linear polarization or through the calculation of nonthermal spectral indices. Additionally, we identify possible radio counterparts for seven SNR candidates that were previously only identified in X-rays (four) or optical (three). We also present six new SNRs and 37 new SNR candidates. The results of this study demonstrate the utility of ASKAP for discovering new and potential SNRs and refining the classification of previously identified candidates. In particular, we find that the EMU and POSSUM surveys are particularly well suited for observing high-latitude SNRs and confirming SNR candidates with polarization. The region studied in this work represents approximately one-quarter of the Galactic plane, by longitude, that will eventually be surveyed by EMU/POSSUM, and we expect that the ongoing surveys will continue to uncover new SNRs and SNR candidates.