Multiwavelength Analysis of Six Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transients

Sevilla, C, Ho, AYQ, A.J., N, Schulze, S, Perley, DA ORCID: 0000-0001-8472-1996, Bremer, M, Andreoni, I, Altunin, I, Brink, TG, Camilo, M, Chandra, P, Chen, P, Chrimes, AA, Coughlin, MW, Das, KK, Drake, A, Filippenko, AV, Fremling, C, Freeburn, J, Yam, AG et al (2026) Multiwavelength Analysis of Six Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transients. The Astrophysical Journal, 1007 (1). ISSN 1538-4357

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Abstract

We present early (≲1 yr) multiwavelength observations and analysis of six luminous fast blue optical transients (LFBOTs). We identified these LFBOTs in Zwicky Transient Facility survey data from their fast light-curve evolution (t1/2 ≤ 12 days), blue colors at peak brightness (g − r ≤ −0.2 mag), a visible host galaxy, high optical luminosity (Mg < −20 mag), and an X-ray and/or radio detection. With the exception of AT2024aehp (ZTF24abygbss), these transients exhibit peaks in their 10 GHz radio light curves at trest ≈ 50–100 days, with peak radio luminosities ranging from 1038 to 1040 erg s−1. Modeling the radio emission as synchrotron radiation indicates a fast (v = 0.1–0.3c) shock in a dense (ne ≈ 103–104 cm−3) medium. The X-ray emission varies by ≈2 orders of magnitude in luminosity (1042–1044 erg s−1) at trest ∼ 20 days. Analysis of the host-galaxy photometry and spectroscopy for each transient shows that LFBOTs are predominantly nonnuclear (a few kiloparsecs offset) with star-forming host galaxies of stellar masses = 109–1011 M⊙. Unlike all other LFBOTs to date, AT2024aehp exhibited a luminous (M < −19 mag) plateau in the optical light curve and its 6–15 GHz radio emission brightened by over an order of magnitude from trest ≈ 70 to 130 days. The mostly consistent radio behavior between these LFBOTs implies a similar circumburst medium, leading us to prefer a progenitor scenario in which mass is lost in a consistent way shortly prior to the terminal event.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	astro-ph.HE; astro-ph.HE; astro-ph.GA; 5109 Space Sciences; 5101 Astronomical Sciences; 51 Physical Sciences; 0201 Astronomical and Space Sciences; 0202 Atomic, Molecular, Nuclear, Particle and Plasma Physics; 0306 Physical Chemistry (incl. Structural); Astronomy & Astrophysics; 5101 Astronomical sciences; 5107 Particle and high energy physics; 5109 Space sciences
Subjects:	Q Science > QB Astronomy Q Science > QC Physics
Divisions:	Astrophysics Research Institute
Publisher:	American Astronomical Society
Date of acceptance:	22 June 2026
Date of first compliant Open Access:	23 September 2026
Date Deposited:	23 Sep 2026 15:16
Last Modified:	23 Sep 2026 15:16
DOI or ID number:	10.3847/1538-4357/ae83b2
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/29522

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