Constraints on pre-SN outbursts from the progenitor of SN 2023ixf using the Large Binocular Telescope

Understand

The progenitor of SN 2023ixf was a $\sim$10$^{4.8}$ to $10^{5.0}\rm ~L_\odot$ star ($\sim$9 to $14 \rm~M_\odot$ at birth) obscured by a dusty $\dot{M} \simeq 10^{-5} \rm~M_\odot~yr^{-1}$ wind with a visual optical depth of $\tau_V \simeq 13$.

• This is required by the progenitor SED, the post-SN X-ray and H$\alpha$ luminosities, and the X-ray column density estimates.
• In Large Binocular Telescope (LBT) data spanning 5600 to 400 d before the SN, there is no evidence for optical variability at the level of $\sim$10$^3\rm~L_\odot$ in $R$ band, roughly 3 times the predicted luminosity of the obscured progenitor.
• This constrains direct observation of any pre-SN optical outbursts where there are LBT observations.