2018A&A...615A.150Z

The origin of the asymmetric supernova remnant (SNR) W49B has been a matter of debate: is it produced by a rare jet-driven core-collapse (CC) supernova, or by a normal supernova that is strongly shaped by its dense environment? Aiming to uncover the explosion mechanism and origin of the asymmetric, centrally filled X-ray morphology of W49B, we have performed spatially resolved X-ray spectroscopy and a search for potential point sources. We report new candidate point sources inside W49B. The Chandra X-ray spectra from W49B are well-characterized by two-temperature gas components (∼0.27keV + 0.6-2.2keV). The hot component gas shows a large temperature gradient from the northeast to the southwest and is over-ionized in most regions with recombination timescales of 1-10x10¹¹s/cm. The Fe element shows strong lateral distribution in the SNR east, while the distribution of Si, S, Ar, Ca is relatively smooth and nearly axially symmetric. Asymmetric Type-Ia explosion of a Chandrasekhar-mass white dwarf (WD) well-explains the abundance ratios and metal distribution of W49B, whereas a jet-driven explosion and normal CC models fail to describe the abundance ratios and large masses of iron-group elements. A model based on a multi-spot ignition of the WD can explain the observed high M_Mn/M_Cr value (0.8-2.2). The bar-like morphology is mainly due to a density enhancement in the center, given the good spatial correlation between gas density and X-ray brightness. The recombination ages and the Sedov age consistently suggest a revised SNR age of 5-6kyr. This study suggests that despite the presence of candidate point sources projected within the boundary of this SNR, W49B is likely a Type-Ia SNR, which suggests that Type-Ia supernovae can also result in mixed-morphology SNRs.