supernova

A Compact Degenerate Primary-star Progenitor of SN 2011fe

Bloom et al. 2012, ApJL, 744, L17

Exclusion of a luminous red giant as a companion star to the progenitor of supernova SN 2011fe

Li et al. 2011, Nature, 480, 348

M95 and SN2012aw

Telescope class:
Site:

M95 is a barred-spiral galaxy about 35 million light years away in the constellation of Leo. The bright blue ring surrounding the core of the galaxy traces a region of ongoing star formation. On March 16th, 2012 the death of a massive star in M95 erupted into a type IIP supernova (SN2012aw).

The Extreme Hosts of Extreme Supernovae

We use GALEX ultraviolet (UV) and optical integrated photometry of the hosts of seventeen luminous supernovae (LSNe, having peak M_V < -21) and compare them to a sample of 26,000 galaxies from a cross-match between the SDSS DR4 spectral catalog and GALEX interim release 1.1. We place the LSNe hosts on the galaxy NUV-r versus M_r color magnitude diagram (CMD) with the larger sample to illustrate how extreme they are. The LSN hosts appear to favor low-density regions of the galaxy CMD falling on the blue edge of the blue cloud toward the low luminosity
Neill, J. D. et al. 2010, ApJ, accepted

The Core-collapse Rate from the Supernova Legacy Survey

We use three years of data from the Supernova Legacy Survey (SNLS) to study the general properties of core-collapse and type Ia supernovae. This is the first such study using the "rolling search" technique which guarantees well-sampled SNLS light curves and good efficiency for supernovae brighter than $i^\prime\sim24$. Using host photometric redshifts, we measure the supernova absolute magnitude distribution down to luminosities $4.5 {\rm mag}$ fainter than normal SNIa. Using spectroscopy and light-curve fitting to discriminate
Bazin et al. 2009, A&A, accepted, astro-ph: 0904.1066

Type Ia supernova science 2010-2020

In the next decade Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) will be used to test theories predicting changes in the Dark Energy equation of state with time. Ultimately this requires a dedicated space mission like JDEM. SNe Ia are mature cosmological probes --- their limitations are well characterized, and a path to improvement is clear. Dominant systematic errors include photometric calibration, selection effects, reddening, and population-dependent differences. Building on past lessons, well-controlled new surveys are poised to make strides in these areas: the Palomar Transient Factory, Skymapper, La
arXiv:0903.1086

Discipline:

Cepheid Variable Stars, Supernovae and Distance Measurement

Discipline:

While stellar parallax can only be used to measure distances to stars within hundreds of parsecs, Cepheid variable stars and supernovae can be used to measure larger distances such as the distances between galaxies.

This video, Measuring the Universe, gives a great introduction to this topic.

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RoboNet-II

Monitoring microlensing events in the Galactic Bulge.