Is the Birth of PSR J0538+2817 Accompanied by a Gamma-ray Burst?

Abstract

Recently, the Five-hundred-meter Aperture Spherical radio Telescope (FAST) measured the three-dimensional velocity of PSR J0538+2817 in its associated supernova remnant S147 and found a possible spin-velocity alignment in this pulsar. Here we show that the high velocity and the spin-velocity alignment in this pulsar can be explained by the so-called electromagnetic rocket mechanism. In this framework, the pulsar is kicked in the direction of the spin axis, which naturally explains the spin-velocity alignment. We scrutinize the evolution of this pulsar and show that the pulsar kick can create a highly relativistic jet at the opposite direction of the kick velocity. The lifetime and energetics of the jet is estimated. It is argued that the jet can generate a Gamma-ray Burst (GRB). The long term dynamical evolution of the jet is calculated. It is found that the shock radius of the jet should expand to about 32 pc at present, which is well consistent with the observed radius of the supernova remnant S147 (32.1 ± 4.8 pc). Additionally, our calculations indicate that the current velocity of the GRB remnant should be about 440 km s −1 , which is also consistent with the observed blast wave velocity of the remnant of S147 (500 km s −1 ).

Imprints of the Jittering Jets Explosion Mechanism in the Morphology of the Supernova Remnant SNR 0540-69.3

“…The reason that in the jittering jets explosion mechanism the NS kick velocity tends to be at a large angle to the main jet-axis is that dense ejecta clumps accelerate the NS by the gravitational tug-boat mechanism (Nordhaus et al 2010;Wongwathanarat et al 2013;Janka 2017; for a different explanation for kick velocities see, e.g., recent studies by Yao et al 2021 andXu et al 2021). Bear & Soker (2018a) argue that either the jets prevent the formation of dense clumps along their propagation direction, or that the dense clumps also supply the gas to the accretion disk that launches the jets.…”