Related papers: Could a nearby supernova explosion have caused a m…
Massive stars can exhibit giant eruptions with high mass loss shortly before their explosion as a core-collapse Supernova. These multiple giant eruptions (MGEs) may have a commutative effect that brings the star to a different state,…
We present a survey of the X-ray emitting ejecta in the Cassiopeia A supernova remnant based on an extensive analysis of over 6000 spectral regions extracted on 2.5-10" angular scales using the Chandra 1 Ms observation. We interpret these…
Compact binary mergers involving neutron stars can eject a fraction of their mass to space. Being extremely neutron rich, this material undergoes rapid neutron capture nucleosynthesis, and the resulting radioactivity powers fast,…
Massive stars can explode as supernovae at the end of their life cycle, releasing neutrinos whose total energy reaches $10^{53}$ erg. Moreover, neutrinos play key roles in supernovae, heating and reviving the shock wave as well as cooling…
Over the past five years evidence has mounted that long-duration (> 2 s) gamma-ray bursts (GRBs)--the most brilliant of all astronomical explosions--signal the collapse of massive stars in our Universe. This evidence was originally based on…
Distant supernovae have been observed to be fainter than what is expected in a matter dominated universe. The most likely explanation is that the universe is dominated by an energy component with negative pressure -- dark energy. However,…
Supermassive primordial stars are expected to form in a small fraction of massive protogalaxies in the early universe, and are generally conceived of as the progenitors of the seeds of supermassive black holes (BHs). Supermassive stars with…
The radii and masses of many giant exoplanets imply their interiors each contain more than $\sim$100 $M_\oplus$ of solids. A large metal content may arise when a giant planet grows by colliding and merging with multiple $\sim$10 $M_\oplus$…
Despite tremendous interest in the topic and decades of research, the origins of the major losses of biodiversity in the history of life on Earth remain elusive. A variety of possible causes for these mass-extinction events have been…
Core-collapse supernovae emit of order $10^{58}$ neutrinos and antineutrinos of all flavors over several seconds, with average energies of 10--25 MeV. In the Sudbury Neutrino Observatory (SNO), a future Galactic supernova at a distance of…
We study the detectability of neutrino bursts from nearby direct black hole-forming collapses (failed supernovae) at Megaton detectors. Due to their high energetics, these bursts could be identified - by the time coincidence of N >= 2 or N…
It has long been expected that some massive stars produce stellar mass black holes (BHs) upon death. Unfortunately, the observational signature of such events has been unclear. It has even been suggested that the result may be an "unnova,"…
Supernovae are expected to occur near the molecular material in which the massive progenitor star was born, except in cases where the photoionizing radiation and winds from the progenitor star and its neighbors have cleared out a region.…
Neutrinos from supernovae (SNe) are crucial probes of explosive phenomena at the deaths of massive stars and neutrino physics. High-energy neutrinos are produced through hadronic processes by cosmic rays, which are accelerated during…
We have estimated fluxes of neutrinos and gamma-rays that are generated from decays of charged and neutral pions from a pulsar surrounded by supernova ejecta in our galaxy, including an effect that has not been taken into consideration,…
Supernova remnants have long been suggested as a class of potential counterparts to unidentified gamma-ray sources. The mechanisms by which such gamma-rays can arise may include emission from a pulsar associated with a remnant, or a variety…
There is a longstanding discrepancy between the observed Galactic classical nova rate of $\sim 10$ yr$^{-1}$ and the predicted rate from Galactic models of $\sim 30$--50 yr$^{-1}$. One explanation for this discrepancy is that many novae are…
We describe results of modeling the effects on Earth-like planets of long-duration gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) within a few kiloparsecs. A primary effect is generation of nitrogen oxide compounds which deplete ozone. Ozone depletion leads to an…
Accurate distance measurements to supernova remnants (SNRs) are crucial for understanding their physical properties and evolution. We present a novel method that combines CO line observations with three-dimensional (3D) extinction maps to…
Core-collapse supernovae are among the most magnificent events in the observable universe. They produce many of the chemical elements necessary for life to exist and their remnants -- neutron stars and black holes -- are interesting…