core collapse tagged posts

Exotic Binary Stars

A Chandra X-ray Observatory image of the globular cluster 47 Tucanae. The image is about ten light-years across, and shows many cataclysmic variables (CVs), white dwarf stars that accrete from a companion star. Astronomers have discovered twenty-two new CVs in the cluster, and used the statistics to argue that, unlike many clusters which have bright, recently formed CVs, the ones here are older or even primordial. Credit: NASA/CXC/Michigan State/A.Steiner et al. 2014

A Chandra X-ray Observatory image of the globular cluster 47 Tucanae. The image is about ten light-years across, and shows many cataclysmic variables (CVs), white dwarf stars that accrete from a companion star. Astronomers have discovered twenty-two new CVs in the cluster, and used the statistics to argue that, unlike many clusters which have bright, recently formed CVs, the ones here are older or even primordial. Credit: NASA/CXC/Michigan State/A.Steiner et al. 2014

Cataclysmic variable stars (CVs) are white dwarf stars that are accreting from an orbiting, low mass binary companion star. The accretion is facilitated by the proximity of the stars; typical orbital periods range from about 1 to 10 hours...

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Simulations Reveal the Invisible Chaos of Superluminous Supernovae

1. Astrophysicist Ken Chen ran 2D simulations with Berkeley Lab's CASTRO code on NERSC's Edison supercomputer to better understand the physical conditions that create superluminious supernova. Credit: Ken Chen, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan 2. Superluminous Supernova simulation in 2D generated with Berkeley Lab developed CASTRO code. (Credit: Ken Chen, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan)

1. Astrophysicist Ken Chen ran 2D simulations with Berkeley Lab’s CASTRO code on NERSC’s Edison supercomputer to better understand the physical conditions that create superluminious supernova.
Credit: Ken Chen, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan 2. Superluminous Supernova simulation in 2D generated with Berkeley Lab developed CASTRO code. (Credit: Ken Chen, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan)

Sightings of a rare breed of superluminous supernovae – stellar explosions that shine 10 to 100 times brighter than normal – are perplexing astronomers. First spotted only in last decade, scientists are confounded by the extraordinary brightness of these events and their explosion mechanisms...

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