The Mira Distance to M101 and a 4% Measurement of H0

• Published in: arXiv.org 2024-01
• Main Authors: Huang, Caroline D, Yuan, Wenlong, Riess, Adam G, Hack, Warren, Whitelock, Patricia A, Zakamska, Nadia L, Casertano, Stefano, Macri, Lucas M, Marengo, Massimo, Menzies, John W, Smith, Randall K
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Distance measurement; Hubble diagram; Luminosity; Magellanic clouds; Spiral galaxies; Supernovae; Universe
• ISSN: 2331-8422
• DOI: 10.48550/arxiv.2312.08423

The giant spiral galaxy M101 is host to the nearest recent Type Ia Supernova (SN 2011fe) and thus has been extensively monitored in the near-infrared to study the late-time lightcurve of the supernova. Leveraging this existing baseline of observations, we derive the first Mira-based distance to M101 by discovering and classifying a sample of 211 Miras with periods ranging from 240 to 400 days in the supernova field. Combined with new HST WFC3/IR channel observations, our dataset totals 11 epochs of F110W (HST \(YJ\)) and 13 epochs of F160W (HST \(H\)) data spanning \(\sim\)2900 days. We adopt absolute calibrations of the Mira Period-Luminosity Relation based on geometric distances to the Large Magellanic Cloud and the water megamaser host galaxy NGC 4258, and find \(\mu_{\rm M101} = \) 29.10 \(\pm\) 0.06 mag. This distance is in 1\(\sigma\) agreement with most other recent Cepheid and Tip of the Red Giant Branch distance measurements to M101. Including the previous Mira-SNIa host, NGC 1559 and SN 2005df, we determine the fiducial SN Ia peak luminosity, \(M^0_B = -19.27 \pm 0.09\) mag. With the Hubble diagram of SNe Ia, we derive \(H_0 = 72.37 \pm 2.97 \) km s\(^{-1}\)Mpc\(^{-1}\), a \(4.1\%\) measurement of \(H_0\) using Miras. We find excellent agreement with recent Cepheid distance ladder measurements of \(H_0\) and confirm previous indications that the local universe value of \(H_0\) is higher than the early-universe value at \(\sim\) \(95\%\) confidence. Currently, the Mira-based \(H_0\) measurement is still dominated by the statistical uncertainty in the SN Ia peak magnitude.