Presentation about late-time Type Ia supernova observations

Description of Activity

A year-long near-infrared plateau in Type Ia supernovae

Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) have famously been used as standard candles, a use that led to the discovery that the expansion of the Universe was accelerating under the influence of a mysterious new phenomenon called "dark energy." And yet, we still do not have a clear picture of the progenitors of SNe Ia, i.e., what types of star systems end up exploding as these supernovae. For obvious reasons, most observers study these supernovae when they are young and at their brightest. In my talk, I will present recent results from late-time observations of SNe Ia with the Hubble Space Telescope, which reveal that "normal" SNe Ia undergo a year-long plateau between 150 and 500 days past maximum light. The properties of the plateau provide a fresh diagnostic of SN Ia explosion physics.

Period	13 Nov 2020
Event title	RAS Specialist Discussion: Progress in Astrophysics with Type-Ia Supernovae
Event type	Conference
Location	London, United KingdomShow on map
Degree of Recognition	International