Astrophysics Seminars

Feb
04
2016

Institute for Advanced Study Informal Astrophysics Seminar

Observational Tests of SN Ia Explosion Models in a Paradigm Shift
Subo Dong
11:00am|Bloomberg Hall, Astrophysics Library

The field of type Ia supernova (SN Ia) explosion physics is in a crisis. Decades of theoretical researches fail to demonstrate that successful explosions can be convincingly achieved from the popular single degenerate and double degenerate merger...

Jan
14
2016

Institute for Advanced Study Informal Astrophysics Seminar

Sweating the Small Stuff: Simulating dwarf galaxies, ultra-faint dwarf galaxies, and their own tiny satellites
Coral Wheeler
11:00am|Bloomberg Hall, Astrophysics Library

If LCDM is correct, then all dark matter halos hosting galaxies, from those hosting dwarfs to those hosting giant clusters, are filled with abundant substructure down to very low mass scales ( 10^9 Msun). Specifically, even the dark matter halos of...

Dec
10
2015

Institute for Advanced Study Informal Astrophysics Seminar

Interaction of Exoplanet Upper Atmospheres With Stellar Radiation and Winds
Phil Arras
11:00am|Bloomberg Hall, Astrophysics Library

Exoplanets orbiting close to their parent star are bombarded by intense radiation which heats and ionizes the upper atmosphere. This is thought to create an extended atmosphere of gas which may be probed spectroscopically during transits of the host...

Dec
03
2015

Institute for Advanced Study Informal Astrophysics Seminar

The Unhealthy Lives of Companions to Millisecond Pulsars
E. Sterl Phinney
11:00am|Bloomberg Hall, Astrophysics Library

Irradiation, bloating, bad circulation, hot flashes, cyclic mass loss. Pulsar radiation has been observed to do many suprising things to nearby companion stars ("black widows" and "redbacks"), posing several long-standing theoretical puzzles for...