Related papers: R-Process elements from magnetorotational hypernov…
We report Sr, Pd and Ag abundances for a sample of metal-poor field giants and analyze a larger sample of Y, Zr, and Ba abundances. The [Y/Zr] and [Pd/Ag] abundance ratios are similar to those measured for the r-process-rich stars CS…
It is unclear if neutron star mergers can explain the observed r-process abundances of metal-poor stars. Collapsars, defined here as rotating massive stars whose collapse results in a rapidly accreting disk around a black hole that can…
A few rare halo giants in the range [Fe/H] $\simeq -2.9\pm0.3$ exhibit {\it r}-process element abundances that vary as a group by factors up to [$r$/Fe] $\sim80$, relative to those of the iron peak and below. Yet, the astrophysical…
Small stellar systems like dwarf galaxies are suggested to be the main building blocks of our Galaxy by numerical simulations in Lambda CDM models. The existence of star streams like Sagittarius tidal stream indicates that dwarf galaxies…
Mergers of compact binaries (of a neutron star and another neutron star or a black hole, NSMs) are suggested to be the promising astrophysical site of the r-process. While the average coalescence timescale of NSMs appears to be > 100 Myr,…
The merger of two neutron stars is predicted to give rise to three major detectable phenomena: a short burst of gamma-rays, a gravitational wave signal, and a transient optical/near-infrared source powered by the synthesis of large amounts…
Models of primordial and hyper-metal-poor stars with masses similar to the Sun experience an ingestion of protons into the hot core during the core helium flash phase at the end of their red giant branch evolution. This produces a…
We present chemical abundances derived from high-resolution Magellan/MIKE spectra of the nine brightest known red giant members of the ultra-faint dwarf galaxy Reticulum II. These stars span the full metallicity range of Ret II (-3.5 <…
I discuss the recent progress in our understanding of nucleosynthesis via rapid neutron capture, the r-process, based on meteoritic data for the early solar system and observations of stars at low metallicities. At present, all data require…
We report on the spectroscopic analysis of RAVE J183013.5-455510, an extremely metal-poor star, highly enhanced in CNO, and with discernible contributions from the rapid neutron-capture process. There is no evidence of binarity for this…
Context. Thanks to the heroic observational campaigns carried out in recent years we now have large samples of metal-poor stars for which measurements of detailed abundances exist. [...] These data hold important clues on the nature of the…
The origin of heavy elements synthesized through the rapid neutron capture process ($r$-process) has been an enduring mystery for over half a century. Cehula et al. (2024) recently showed that magnetar giant flares, among the brightest…
To explain the high observed abundances of r-process elements in local ultra- faint dwarf (UFD) galaxies, we perform cosmological zoom simulations that include r-process production from neutron star mergers (NSMs). We model star-formation…
We explore heavy element nucleosynthesis in neutrino-driven winds from rapidly-rotating, strongly magnetized proto-neutron stars for which the magnetic dipole is aligned with the rotation axis, and the field is assumed to be a static…
Recent studies suggest that binary neutron star (NS-NS) mergers robustly produce the heavy r-process nuclei above the atomic mass number A ~ 130 because of their ejecta consisting of almost pure neutrons (electron fraction of Y_e < 0.1).…
A large star-to-star variation in the abundances of r-process elements, as seen in the [Eu/Fe] ratio for Galactic halo stars, is a prominent feature that is distinguishable from other heavy elements. It is, in part, caused by the presence…
Recent observations of Reticulum II have uncovered an overabundance of r-process elements, compared to similar ultra-faint dwarf spheroidal galaxies (UFDs). Because the metallicity and star formation history of Reticulum II appear…
We investigate nuclear reactions and feedback in hyperaccreting neutron star environments, considering accretion rates in the range 0.3 - $3\times10^4$ $M_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$, typical of short-period compact object binaries in common…
We study the enrichment and mixing of r-process elements in ultrafaint dwarf galaxies (UFDs). We assume that r-process elements are produced by neutron-star mergers (NSMs), and examine multiple models with different natal kick velocities…
The astrophysical r-process site where about half of the elements heavier than iron are produced has been a puzzle for several decades. Here we discuss the role of neutron star mergers (NSMs) in the light of the first direct detection of…