When cores collapse: a variety of stellar deaths

by Dr Avishay Gal-Yam (Weizmann Institute Of Science)

Thursday 1 Oct 2009, 10:00 → 12:00 Europe/Stockholm

FB42

The term "core collapse" is commonly associated with the death of massive stars exploding as supernovae (SNe) and leaving behind compact neutron star remnants. The physics of this "standard" scenario are well-studied theoretically and are founded on the unique observations of the nearby SN 1987A. However, theory predicts that gravitational core collapse can also occur under different circumstances, and result in physical explosions and observational manifestations that are very different from SN 1987A. I will review some of these alternative scenarios, going from the lightest to the heaviest cores that may collapse. I will then present new observations suggesting that we have already identified some of these mechanisms in nature, and with the advent of new wide-field surveys, are likely to further explore this previously uncharted astrophysical territory.