Collaborative Research: Constraining Supernova Progenitor Systems and Explosion Mechanisms Through 3D Reconstruction of Supernova Remnants

超新星爆炸是戏剧性的事件，将大量物质释放回恒星之间的空间。 研究人员将研究这些爆炸的残余物，以更好地了解爆炸的恒星。 该团队选择了 5 个相对较近的超新星遗迹 (SNR)，并将结合各种观测结果来创建爆炸恒星部分位置和速度的 3 维模型。 由于信噪比包含许多元素，每种元素都以特定波长发出明亮的辐射，因此研究人员可以推断出恒星爆炸前的成分。 这些观察结果将帮助我们了解导致爆炸的显着过程。研究人员将使用虚拟现实 (VR) 技术创建 SNR 的 3 维 (3D) 重建，与公众分享他们的研究成果。研究人员已经展示了 VR 技术的成功。 这些动态可视化将把研究经验扩展到所在大学之外，作为各种公共宣传环境的宝贵补充。来自当地学校的学生被邀请到普渡大学展望中心体验 3D 可视化并了解天文学。超新星是理想的多信使实验室，在宇宙的结构和化学组成中发挥着关键作用。他们开发的 3D 重建套件将直接解决与超新星爆炸动力学及其演化到残余相相关的基本主题的不确定性，这些基本主题在物理学和天文学的许多领域产生严重影响。研究人员将把观察结果组织成可用于对日益复杂的模拟进行可靠测试的格式。他们将利用重建结果来预测超新星的引力波和中微子信号，并揭示动力不稳定性、旋转和磁场的竞争效应，以及各种超新星类型的超新星前恒星内部结构。普渡大学是 NSF 资助的超新星预警系统的成员，该系统将受益于这些 3D 重建，因为它致力于探测和表征下一个银河超新星中微子。该奖项反映了 NSF 的法定使命，并通过使用基金会的智力价值和更广泛的影响审查标准进行评估，被认为值得支持。

Supernova explosions are dramatic events, releasing huge amounts of material back into the space between stars. The investigators will study the remnants of these explosions to better understand the stars that exploded. The team has selected 5 relatively nearby supernova remnants (SNRs) and will combine a variety of observations to create 3-dimensional models of the locations, and velocities, of parts of the exploded stars. Because the SNRs contain many elements, each brightly radiating at specific wavelengths, the investigators can deduce the composition of the stars just before explosions. These observations will help us understand the remarkable processes leading up to the explosions. The investigators will share their research with the public by creating 3-dimensional (3D) reconstructions of SNRs using their Virtual Reality (VR) technology. The investigator has already demonstrated success with the VR technology. These dynamic visualizations will extend the research experience well beyond the home university, as valuable additions to a variety of public outreach settings. Students from local schools are invited to the Purdue University Envision Center to experience the 3D visualization and learn about astronomy. Supernovae are ideal multi-messenger laboratories that play a key role in the structural and chemical makeup of the universe. The suite of 3D reconstructions they developed will directly address uncertainty in fundamental topics pertaining to supernova explosion dynamics and their evolution to remnant phases that have serious ramifications in many areas of physics and astronomy. The investigators will organize the observations into formats useful for reliable tests of increasingly complex simulations. They will use the reconstructions to predict gravitational wave and neutrino signals of supernovae, and unravel competing effects of dynamical instabilities, rotation and magnetic fields, and pre-supernova stellar interior structure for a variety of supernova types. Purdue University is a member of the NSF-funded Supernova Early Warning System, which will benefit from these 3D reconstructions as it seeks to detect and characterize neutrinos from the next Galactic supernova.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.