TAPIR Seminar

In person: 370 Cahill. To Join via Zoom: 851 0756 7442

Abstract: Interaction with the surrounding media provides an important way to learn about the progenitors of supernovae (SNe). A fraction of core-collapse SNe show signs of strong interaction with the circumstellar material (CSM). Rising evidence points to asymmetry and sustained growth (over decades) of the CSM prior to core-collapse. Using a combination of the stellar evolution code MESA, a 3D hydrodynamics code, and a combination of radiation hydrodynamics and radiative transfer methods, I will demonstrate how SNe in binary systems can show signs of strong interaction, and may appear different when viewed from different directions. In the next part of my talk, I will venture ahead to the remnant phase and discuss how interaction in remnants of thermonuclear supernovae (Type-Ia SNRs) reveals the mass of the white dwarf (WD) progenitor. The mass of the WD in turn holds clue to the explosion mechanism, which is still poorly constrained for observed Type-Ia SNe. I will also demonstrate a technique to analyze X-ray and optical observations of SNRs. I will present application of the method to two well-known examples, unveiling whether their progenitor reached the Chandrasekhar mass at explosion.