Related papers: Radiation-Driven Stellar Eruptions
There have been several surprising developments in our understanding of symbiotic binary stars and nova eruptions over the last decade or so based on multiwavelength data. For example, symbiotic stars without shell burning on their white…
Rotation in massive stars has been studied on the main sequence and during helium burning for decades, but only recently have realistic numerical simulations followed the transport of angular momentum that occurs during more advanced stages…
Using hydrodynamical numerical simulations we show that high-velocity ejecta with 10,000 km/s in the outbursts of the supernova impostor SN 2009ip and similar luminous blue variable (LBV) stars can be explained by the interaction of fast…
The properties of outflows powered by massive stars are reviewed with an emphasis on the nearest examples, Orion and Cepheus-A. The Orion OMC1 outflow may have been powered by the dynamical decay of a non-hierarchical massive star system…
The death of massive stars produces a variety of supernovae, which are linked to the structure of the exploding stars. The detection of several precursor stars of Type II supernovae have been reported, however we do not yet have direct…
From the main sequence to their late evolutionary stages, massive stars spend most of their life as hot stars. Due to their high effective temperatures, the maximum of their emitted flux falls into the ultraviolet (UV) regime. Consequently,…
Luminous Blue Variables (LBVs) are believed to be evolved, extremely massive stars close to the Eddington Limit and hence prone to bouts of large-scale, unstable mass loss. I discuss current understanding of the evolutionary state of these…
Massive stars can significantly modify the surrounding medium during their lifetime. When the stars explode as supernovae, the resulting shock wave expands within this modified medium and not within the interstellar medium. We explore the…
We review potential mass-loss mechanisms in the various evolutionary stages of massive stars, from the well-known line-driven winds of O-stars and BA-supergiants to the less-understood winds from Red Supergiants. We discuss optically thick…
In this contribution I summarize our current knowledge of the nature and significance of starburst-driven galactic superwinds. These flows are driven primarily by the kinetic energy supplied by supernovae. Superwinds are complex, multiphase…
Main sequence stars exhibit a clear rotation-activity relationship, in which rapidly rotating stars drive strong chromospheric/coronal ultraviolet and X-ray emission. While the vast majority of red giant stars are inactive, a few percent…
We present results from the first extensive study of convection zones in the envelopes of hot massive stars, which are caused by opacity peaks associated with iron and helium ionization. These convective regions can be located very close to…
Luminous blue variables (LBVs) are hot, very luminous massive stars displaying large quasi-periodic variations in brightness, radius,and photospheric temperature, on timescales of years to decades. The physical origin of this variability,…
Hot luminous stars show a variety of phenomena in their photospheres and in their winds which still lack clear physical explanations at this time. Among these phenomena are non-thermal line broadening, line profile variability (LPVs),…
There are about 2000 gamma ray burst (GRB) events known to us with data pouring in at the rate of one per day. While the afterglows of GRBs in radio, optical and X-ray bands are successfully explained by the fireball model, a significant…
The physical mechanism that allows massive stars to form is a major unsolved problem in astrophysics. Stars with masses $\gtsim 20$ $\msun$ reach the main sequence while still embedded in their natal clouds, and the immense radiation output…
Almost since the beginning, massive stars and their resultant supernovae have played a crucial role in the Universe. These objects produce tremendous amounts of energy and new, heavy elements that enrich galaxies, encourage new stars to…
Recent observations suggest that gamma ray bursts (GRBs) and their afterglows are produced by highly relativistic jets emitted in core collapse supernova explosions (SNe). The result of the event, probably, is not just a compact object plus…
In this PhD Thesis we study the occurrence of powerful stellar outbursts in the late phases of evolution of stars like the Sun. This is one of the most controversial topics in the field, as the extraordinary variety of shapes revealed by…
One of the central problems in supernova theory is the question how massive stars explode. Understanding the physical processes that drive the explosion is crucial for linking the stellar progenitors to the final remnants and for predicting…