Frontiers Lecture: Supernovae

Part of Frontiers Lectures

Tuesday, June 13, 2023

The hot star Wolf-Rayet 124, seen as a bright white star against a dark, milky background, seen in infrared and near-infrared by the Webb telescope. Image courtesy of NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Webb ERO Production Team
Supernovae, the explosions of stars, are some of the most energetic phenomena in the universe, rivaling the combined light of billions of stars.

These explosive events have been a subject of study for centuries and have a massive impact on our past, present, and future on Earth.   

Join Or Graur, associate professor of astrophysics at the University of Portsmouth's Institute of Cosmology and Gravitation, and Museum Senior Scientist Jackie Faherty for a deep dive into supernovae. How have observations of supernovae contributed to the transformation of astronomy from astrology to astrophysics? What are the modern tools and techniques used in the study of supernovae? Graur will share how his own observations with the Hubble Space Telescope have impacted the dynamic field of supernova research.   

After the program, Graur will sign copies of his book, Supernova, which will be available for purchase.   

Resources 

Introduction to Supernova: Astronomy Essentials: What is a Supernova? 

A Sample of Graur’s recent work: Late-Time Observations of Type Ia Supernova SN 2014J with the Hubble Space Telescope Wide Field Camera 3 

Graur’s recent book, a concise illustrated overview of supernova, which will be available for sale and signature at this program: Supernova by Or Graur 

This program utilizes OpenSpace software supported by NASA under award No NNX16AB93A. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.