Related papers: Illuminating the Primeval Universe with Type IIn S…
Finding the first generation of (Population III or Pop III) stars is one of the most ambitious and exciting challenges of astrophysics. JWST opened concrete prospects for their detection during the Epoch of Reionization (EoR), where…
We characterize the local (2-kpc sized) environments of Type Ia, II, and Ib/c supernovae (SNe) that have recently occurred in nearby ($d\lesssim50$ Mpc) galaxies. Using ultraviolet (UV, from GALEX) and infrared (IR, from WISE) maps of 359…
Type-IIn supernovae (SNe), which are characterized by strong interaction of their ejecta with the surrounding circumstellar matter (CSM), provide a unique opportunity to study the mass-loss history of massive stars shortly before their…
Properties of the first generation of stars (Pop III), such as their initial mass function (IMF), are poorly constrained by observations and have yet to converge between simulations. The cosmological 21-cm signal of neutral hydrogen is…
Much controversy surrounds the inferred progenitor masses of Type II-Plateau (II-P) supernovae (SNe). The debate is nourished by the discrepant results from radiation-hydrodynamics simulations, from pre-explosion imaging, and from studies…
The detection of billion-solar-mass supermassive black holes (SMBHs) within the first billion years of cosmic history challenges conventional theories of black hole formation and growth. Simultaneously, recent JWST observations revealing…
Supernovae (SNe), the luminous explosions of stars, were observed since antiquity, with typical peak luminosity not exceeding 1.2x10^{43} erg/s (absolute magnitude >-19.5 mag). It is only in the last dozen years that numerous examples of…
The massive star origins for Type IIP supernovae (SNe) have been established through direct detection of their red supergiants progenitors in pre-explosion observations; however, there has been limited success in the detection of the…
We investigate the effects of a top-heavy stellar initial mass function on the reionisation history of the intergalactic medium (IGM). We use cosmological simulations that include self-consistently the feedback from ionising radiation, H_2…
The initial mass function (IMF) of the first (Population III) stars and Population II (Pop II) stars is poorly known due to a lack of observations of the period between recombination and reionization. In simulations of the formation of the…
We investigate the transition from primordial Population III (Pop III) star formation to normal Pop II star formation in the first galaxies using new cosmological hydrodynamic simulations. We find that while the first stars seed their host…
Observing the first generation of Population III (Pop III) stars is one of the most demanding challenges in astronomy. Indeed, Pop III stars are expected to predominantly form within faint minihalos at early times with a top-heavy initial…
Direct observational searches for Population III (Pop III) stars at high redshift are faced with the question of how to select the most promising targets for spectroscopic follow-up. To help answer this, we use a large-scale cosmological…
Recent modeling of hydrogen-rich Type II supernova (SN II) light curves suggests the presence of dense circumstellar material (CSM) surrounding the exploding progenitor stars. This has important implications for the activity and structure…
We examine the dynamical evolution and statistical properties of the supernova ejecta of massive primordial stars in a cosmological framework to determine whether this first population of stars could have enriched the universe to the levels…
Interaction-powered supernovae (SNe) explode within an optically-thick circumstellar medium (CSM) that could be ejected during eruptive events. To identify and characterize such pre-explosion outbursts we produce forced-photometry light…
The progenitor stars of several Type IIb supernovae (SNe) show indications for extended hydrogen envelopes. These envelopes might be the outcome of luminous energetic pre-explosion events, so-called precursor eruptions. We use the Palomar…
Observationally, supernovae (SNe) are divided into subclasses pertaining to their distinct characteristics. This diversity reflects the diversity in the progenitor stars. It is not entirely clear how different evolutionary paths leading…
We present the results of a 10.5 yr, volume limited (28 Mpc) search for supernova (SN) progenitor stars. We compile all SNe discovered within this volume (132, of which 27% are type Ia) and determine the relative rates of each sub-type from…
The most metal-poor stars record the earliest metal enrichment triggered by Population III stars. By comparing observed abundance patterns with theoretical yields of metal-free stars, physical properties of their first star progenitors can…