Photometric and Spectroscopic Properties of Type Ia Supernova 2018oh with Early Excess Emission from the Kepler 2 Observations

Supernova (SN) 2018oh (ASASSN-18bt) is the first spectroscopically confirmed Type Ia supernova (SN Ia) observed in the Kepler field. The Kepler data revealed an excess emission in its early light curve, allowing us to place interesting constraints on its progenitor system. Here we present extensive optical, ultraviolet, and nearinfrared photometry, as well as dense sampling of optical spectra, for this object. SN 2018oh is relatively normal in its photometric evolution, with a rise time of 18.3 +/- 0.3 days and Delta m(15)(B) = 0.96 +/- 0.03 mag, but it seems to have bluer B - V colors. We construct the UVOIR bolometric light curve having a peak luminosity of 1.49. x. 10(43) erg s(-1), from which we derive a nickel mass as 0.55 +/- 0.04M(circle dot) by fitting radiation diffusion models powered by centrally located Ni-56. Note that the moment when nickel-powered luminosity starts to emerge is + 3.85 days after the first light in the Kepler data, suggesting other origins of the early-time emission, e. g., mixing of Ni-56 to outer layers of the ejecta or interaction between the ejecta and nearby circumstellar material or a nondegenerate companion star. The spectral evolution of SN 2018oh is similar to that of a normal SN Ia but is characterized by prominent and persistent carbon absorption features. The C. II features can be detected from the early phases to about 3 weeks after the maximum light, representing the latest detection of carbon ever recorded in an SN Ia. This indicates that a considerable amount of unburned carbon exists in the ejecta of SN 2018oh and may mix into deeper layers.