Discovery of a Candidate Central Compact Object in the Galactic Nonthermal SNR G330.2+1.0

• Published in: The Astrophysical journal 2006-12, Vol.653 (1), p.L37-L40
• Main Authors: Park, Sangwook, Mori, Koji, Kargaltsev, Oleg, Slane, Patrick O, Hughes, John P, Burrows, David N, Garmire, Gordon P, Pavlov, George G
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Astronomy; Earth, ocean, space; Exact sciences and technology
• ISSN: 1538-4357; 0004-637X; 1538-4357
• DOI: 10.1086/510366

We report on the discovery of a pointlike source (CXOU J160103.1-513353) at the center of the Galactic supernova remnant (SNR) G330.2+1.0 with Chandra X-Ray Observatory. The X-ray spectrum fits a blackbody model with kT 60.49 keV, implying a small emission region of R 6 0.4 km at the distance of 5 kpc. The estimated X-ray luminosity is L sub(X) 61 x 10 super(33) ergs s super(-1) in the 1-10 keV band. A power-law model may also fit the observed spectrum, but the fit results in a very large photon index, 6 5. We find no counterparts at other wavelengths. The X-ray emission was steady over the 613 hr observation period, showing no variability. While we find marginal evidence for X-ray pulsations (P - 7.5 s), the presence of a pulsar at the position of this object is not conclusive with the current data, requiring an independent confirmation. These results are generally consistent with an interpretation of this object as a central compact object associated with SNR G330.2+1.0.