DISCOVERY OF GAMMA-RAY EMISSION FROM THE SUPERNOVA REMNANT Kes 17 WITH FERMI LARGE AREA TELESCOPE

We report the discovery of GeV emission at the position of supernova remnant Kes 17 by using the data from the Large Area Telescope on board the Fermi Gamma-ray Space Telescope. Kes 17 can be clearly detected with a significance of ∼12σ in the 1-20 GeV range. Moreover, a number of γ-ray sources were detected in its vicinity. The γ-ray spectrum of Kes 17 can be described well by a simple power law with a photon index of Γ ∼ 2.4. Together with the multiwavelength evidence for its interactions with the nearby molecular cloud, the γ-ray detection suggests that Kes 17 is a candidate acceleration site for cosmic rays.