BVRI light curves of SN 2003ie

With only a weak upper limit derived on the mass of its progenitor (<25M_{sun}_) from previous pre-explosion studies, this event could be a potential exception to the "red supergiant (RSG) problem" (the lack of high-mass RSGs exploding as Type IIP SNe). However, this is true only if SN2003ie was a Type IIP event, something which has never been determined.

Using recently derived core-collapse SN light-curve templates, as well as by comparison to other known SNe, we find that SN2003ie was indeed a likely Type IIP event. However, with a plateau magnitude of ~-15.5mag, it is found to be a member of the faint Type IIP class. Previous members of this class have been shown to arise from relatively low-mass progenitors (<12M_{sun}_).