Progenitor and explosion properties of SN 2023ixf estimated based on a light-curve model grid of Type II supernovae.

The article focuses on estimating the progenitor and explosion properties of the nearby Type II supernova SN 2023ixf by comparing its observed light curves with a pre-existing synthetic model grid containing about 228,000 Type II supernova models. Using this grid, the study finds that SN 2023ixf likely originated from a progenitor with a zero-age main-sequence (ZAMS) mass of approximately 10 solar masses, an explosion energy of (2–3) × 10^51 erg, a nickel-56 (^56Ni) mass of 0.04–0.06 solar masses, a mass-loss rate between 10^(-3) and 10^(-2) solar masses per year with a wind velocity of 10 km/s, and a dense, confined circumstellar matter (CSM) radius of (6–10) × 10^14 cm. These parameter estimates align well with previous detailed modeling efforts, demonstrating that rapid parameter estimation using a comprehensive model grid is a viable approach for characterizing Type II supernovae, especially in anticipation of the large number of discoveries expected from the Vera C. Rubin Observatory's Legacy Survey of Space and Time (LSST).