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Observational astronomy has shown significant growth over the last decade and has made important contributions to cosmology. A major paradigm shift in cosmology was brought about by observations of Type Ia supernovae. The notion that the…
We present some recent highlights and prospects for the study of hot astrophysical plasmas. Hot plasmas can be studied primarily through their X-ray emission and absorption. Most astrophysical objects, from solar system objects to the…
Cosmology is intrinsically intertwined with questions in fundamental physics. The existence of non-baryonic dark matter requires new physics beyond the Standard Model of elemenatary-particle interactions and Einstein's general relativity,…
This review touches on historical aspects, going back to the early days of nuclear astrophysics, initiated by B$^2$FH and Cameron, discusses (i) the required nuclear input from reaction rates and decay properties up to the nuclear equation…
Astronomical observations already produce vast amounts of data through a new generation of telescopes that cannot be analyzed manually. Next-generation telescopes such as the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope and the Square Kilometer Array…
Our recent re-analysis of the solar photospheric spectra with non-local thermodynamic equilibrium (non-LTE) models resulted in higher metal abundances compared to previous works. When applying the new chemical abundances to Standard Solar…
The problem of the origin of the elements is a fundamental one in astronomy and one that has many open questions. Prominent examples include (1) the nature of Type Ia supernovae and the timescale of their contributions; (2) the…
The major questions relevant to star and planet formation are: What controls the rate, efficiency, spatial clustering, multiplicity, and initial mass function of star formation, now and in the past? What are the major feedback mechanisms…
Relevant uncertainties on theoretical atomic data are vital to determine the accuracy of plasma diagnostics in a number of areas including in particular the astrophysical study. We present a new calculation of the uncertainties on the…
We study the density structures of planetary nebulae implied by four diagnostics that sample different regions within the nebulae: [S II] $\lambda6716/\lambda6731$, [O II] $\lambda3726/\lambda3729$, [Cl III] $\lambda5518/\lambda5538$, and…
Astrophysical molecular spectroscopy is an important means of searching for new physics through probing the variation of the proton-to-electron mass ratio, $\mu$. New molecular probes could provide tighter constraints on the variation of…
This review covers a subset of the astrophysical phenomena where neutrinos play a significant role and where the underlying microphysics is nuclear physics. The current status of the solar neutrino problem, atmospheric neutrino experiments,…
Abundance ratios of radioactive to stable neutron-capture elements in very metal-poor stars may be used to estimate the age of our Galaxy. But extracting accurate ages from these data requires continuing work on many fronts: a)…
As the panel on Planetary Systems and Star Formation (PSF) is fully aware, the next decade will see major advances in our understanding of these areas of research. To quote from their charge, these advances will occur in studies of solar…
With SKA precursor and pathfinder operations in full swing, radio and (sub-)mm astronomy is entering the era of super big data. The big questions is how to make (sub-)mm and radio data available to the astronomical community, preferably…
Modern astronomy has been rapidly increasing our ability to see deeper into the universe, acquiring enormous samples of cosmic populations. Gaining astrophysical insights from these datasets requires a wide range of sophisticated…
This white paper addresses selected new (to X-ray astronomy) physics and data analysis issues that will impact ASTRO-H SWG observations as a result of its high-spectral-resolution X-ray microcalorimeter, the focussing hard X-ray optics and…
Several different approximations and techniques have been developed for the calculation of atomic structure, ionization, and excitation of atoms and ions. These techniques have been used to compute large amounts of spectroscopic data of…
During the last few decades, great effort has been made towards understanding hydrodynamical processes which determine the structure and evolution of stars. Up to now, the most stringent constraints have been provided by helioseismology and…
In these lectures the present status of the so-called standard cosmological model, based on the hot Big Bang theory and the inflationary paradigm is reviewed. Special emphasis is given to the origin of the cosmological perturbations we see…