Related papers: The exploration of the unknown
Cosmology has come a long way from being based on a small number of observations to being a data-driven precision science. We discuss the questions "What is observable?", "What in the Universe is knowable?" and "What are the fundamental…
The study of the formation of massive stars presents complex challenges from both theoretical and observational points of view. The initial phases of evolution, for instance, remain almost hidden except at radio and IR wavelengths. In this…
The lunar surface allows a unique way forward in cosmology, to go beyond current limits. The far side provides an unexcelled radio-quiet environment for probing the dark ages via 21 cm interferometry to seek elusive clues on the nature of…
A brief summary of some highlights in the study of high energy astrophysical sources over the past decade is presented. It is argued that the great progress that has been made derives largely from the application of new technology to…
The recent discoveries of high-energy astrophysical neutrinos and gravitational waves have opened new windows of exploration to the Universe. Combining neutrino observations with measurements of electromagnetic radiation and cosmic rays…
The next decade promises an observational revolution which will change cosmology forever. The precise measurement of the angular anisotropy of the cosmic microwave background should specify to a few percent all of the parameters of the…
In the last three decades, about 50 radio supernovae have been detected as a result of targeted searches of optically discovered supernovae in the local universe. Despite this relatively small number some diversity among them has already…
Scientific discovery is mediated by ideas that, after being formulated in hypotheses, can be tested, validated, and quantified before they eventually lead to accepted concepts. Computer-mediated discovery in astrophysics is no exception,…
This paper presents a review of the history, motivation and current status of high energy neutrino telescopes. Many years after these detectors were first conceived, the operation of kilometer-cubed scale detectors is finally on the horizon…
Research in cosmic rays is now nearly a century old, but most of the fundamental questions in this field remain unanswered, on the other hand the perspectives of future studies in the next decade are very bright. New detectors will provide…
Radio-astronomy is about to embark on a new way of doing science. The revolution that is about to take place is not due to the enormous sensitivity of the Square Kilometre Array, which is still a decade away, but due to its pathfinders,…
The origin and nature of the highest energy cosmic ray events is currently the subject of intense investigation by giant air shower arrays and fluorescent detectors. These particles reach energies well beyond what can be achieved in…
The dramatic confrontation between new observations and theories of the early and recent universe makes cosmology one of the most rapidly advancing fields in the physical sciences. The universe is a unique laboratory in which to probe…
Planck will be the first mission to map the entire cosmic microwave background (CMB) sky with mJy sensitivity and resolution better than 10'. The science enabled by such a mission spans many areas of astrophysics and cosmology. In…
Cosmology contributes a good deal to the investigation of variation of fundamental physical constants. High resolution data is available and allows for detailed analysis over cosmological distances and a multitude of methods were developed.…
Multi-messenger astronomy has experienced an explosive development in the past few years. While not being a particularly young field, it has recently attracted a lot of attention by several major discoveries and unprecedented observation…
Contemporary astronomy benefits of very large and rapidly growing amounts of data in all bands of the electromagnetic spectrum, from long-wavelength radio waves to high energy gamma-rays. Astronomers normally specialize in data taken in one…
The past few years have seen dramatic breakthroughs and spectacular and puzzling discoveries in astrophysics and cosmology. In many cases, the new observations can only be explained with the introduction of new fundamental physics. Here we…
A new phenomenon, recently studied in theoretical physics, may have considerable interest for astronomers: the explosive decay of old primordial black holes via quantum tunnelling. Models predict radio and gamma bursts with a characteristic…
We review some aspects of the current state of data-intensive astronomy, its methods, and some outstanding data analysis challenges. Astronomy is at the forefront of "big data" science, with exponentially growing data volumes and data…