Type II SN Light Curves from the Caltech Core Collapse Project

Abstract

We presented our analysis of a sample of type II supernova (SN) light curves measured by the Caltech Core Collapse Project (CCCP). CCCP is a large observational program which made use of the robotic 60-in and the Hale 200-in telescopes to obtain optical photometry, spectroscopy and IR photometry of 49 nearby core-collapse supernovae (SNe). It provides a fair sample of core-collapse events, with well-defined selection criteria, and uniform, high-quality optical/IR observations. Our goal is to characterize the little-studied properties of core-collapse supernovae as a population. Preliminary data indicate a diverse set of sub-populations including “standard” type IIP supernovæ, declining supernovæ (at different rates) and slowly rising peculiar supernovæ. Work is in progress to map and quantify that diversity better. It is hoped that a single tunable formula will be able to describe most light-curve shapes, thereby helping us attain a better understanding of the physical mechanisms underlying these results.