Workshop on Plasma Physics of Neutron Star Mergers

该奖项将为定于2018年10月1日至3日在纽约熨斗研究所计算天体物理中心举行的中子星合并等离子体物理研讨会提供部分支持。这次研讨会将汇集引力波天体物理和等离子体物理方面的专家，讨论这两个传统上互不相连的领域之间的界面上的关键问题，确定“重大挑战”问题，并确定在未来5-10年内可能取得重大进展的领域。预计在解决这些科学挑战方面的实质性进展将需要大量的计算资源和新的方法，因此计算天体物理中心表示有兴趣主办这次研讨会是合适的。中子星GW170817的合并一直是有记录以来观测最好的天文事件，LIGO探测触发了伽马射线、X射线、紫外线、光学和无线电波段的70个团队的成功观测。在2017年10月LIGO结果公布后的两天里，arxiv上出现了近150份专门介绍合并的预印本。讲习班是将等离子体物理学家和磁流体动力学(MHD)专家带入这一领域的机会，他们拥有了解等离子体/MHD现象的专业知识，而等离子体/MHD现象对于整个电磁光谱中产生烟花至关重要。预计研讨会将对等离子体物理研究和中子星合并的多信使天体物理产生重大影响。结果将包括对重元素核合成环境的更好理解，重元素核合成已被证明对星系的化学演化至关重要，并为未来天文设施和任务的设计提供关键投入。这一奖项反映了NSF的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力优势和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

This award will provide partial support for a Workshop on Plasma Physics of Neutron Star Mergers scheduled to take place on October 1-3, 2018 at the Center for Computational Astrophysics of the Flatiron Institute in New York City, NY. This workshop will bring together experts in gravitational wave astrophysics and plasma physics to discuss key problems at the interface between these two traditionally disconnected fields, identify "grand challenge" problems, and identify areas where significant progress could be made in the next 5-10 years. It is anticipated that substantial progress in addressing these scientific challenges will entail significant computational resources and new methodologies, so it is fitting that the Center for Computational Astrophysics has expressed interest in hosting the workshop.The merger of neutron stars GW170817 has been the best observed astronomical event in recorded history, with LIGO detection triggering successful observations by 70 teams working in the gamma ray, x-ray, UV, optical, and radio bands. Close to 150 preprints dedicated to the merger appeared on the arXiv during the two days after the publication of the LIGO result in October 2017. The workshop is an opportunity to bring into this field the plasma physicists and magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) experts that have the expertise to understand the plasma/MHD phenomena that are crucial for generating the fireworks in the whole of the electromagnetic spectrum. It is expected that the workshop will have a large impact on both the plasma physics research and on the multi-messenger astrophysics of neutron star mergers. The outcome will include improved understanding of the environment for heavy element nucleosynthesis, which has been shown to be crucial for the chemical evolution of galaxies, and key input for design of future astronomical facilities and missions.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.