Question regarding supernovae shock breakout

  • Thread starter Thread starter Physics Dad
  • Start date Start date
  • Tags Tags
    Shock Supernovae
Click For Summary
SUMMARY

The discussion centers on the shock breakout of supernovae, specifically identifying which types of stars exhibit the strongest shock breakouts. Red Super-giants (RSGs) are highlighted as the primary candidates due to their significant kinetic energy, which correlates with stellar mass, and thermal energy, which is influenced by temperature and stellar radius. Research indicates that a 25MΘ RSG can achieve energy levels around 20 x 1051 erg, a peak temperature of approximately 5 x 105 K, and a peak luminosity near 200 x 1044 erg/s. The discussion also touches on the role of mass and metallicity in determining shock breakout strength.

PREREQUISITES
  • Understanding of supernova mechanisms and classifications
  • Familiarity with stellar evolution, particularly Red Super-giants
  • Knowledge of astrophysical energy calculations and units
  • Basic comprehension of the impact of metallicity on stellar properties
NEXT STEPS
  • Research the energy output and characteristics of Red Super-giants in supernova events
  • Study the relationship between stellar mass, metallicity, and supernova types
  • Examine the role of shock breakout in core-collapse supernovae
  • Explore recent papers on supernova shock breakout phenomena and their implications
USEFUL FOR

Astrophysics students, researchers in stellar evolution, and anyone interested in the mechanics of supernovae and their classifications will benefit from this discussion.

Physics Dad
Messages
54
Reaction score
1
Thread moved from the technical forums, so no Homework Template is shown
Hi,

I am currently studying for a masters in Astrophysics and am in my Stellar Atmospheres module.

One of the questions I have been asked is with regards to the shock breakout of supernovae.

Basically, the question is which type of stars show the strongest shock breakout and why?

My thinking on this is that it is Red Super-giants as effectively the kinetic energy is a function of stellar mass the thermal energy is a function of temperature and stellar radius.

I have seen some papers showing energy levels in the range of 20 x 1051 erg, peak temperature around 5 x 105 K and peak luminosity around 200 x 1044 erg/s for a 25MΘ RSG, and these values seem to drop off either side of this mass.

The simple fact though is that I don't full understand why.

Could anyone help shed some light on this?

Thank you!
 
Physics news on Phys.org
Physics Dad said:
Basically, the question is which type of stars show the strongest shock breakout and why?
Isn't it a question of mass and metalicity?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Supernova has a table: Core collapse scenarios by mass and metallicity
 

Similar threads

Undergrad Luminous Fast Blue Optical Transients (LFBOTs)
  • · Replies 0 ·
Replies
0
Views
974
Undergrad Ultraluminous X-ray source in the galaxy NGC 55
  • · Replies 0 ·
Replies
0
Views
2K
Graduate What Makes Supernova 2008ha Unique and How Did a 14-Year-Old Discover It?
  • · Replies 5 ·
Replies
5
Views
3K
Graduate What Are the Key Questions About Supernova Data and the Modified Milne Model?
  • · Replies 116 ·
4
Replies
116
Views
25K
Undergrad Two recent tests of loop quantum gravity theory
  • · Replies 15 ·
Replies
15
Views
6K
Graduate Recent papers relevant to cosmology that seemed extra interesting
  • · Replies 1 ·
Replies
1
Views
3K
Undergrad Question regarding Evaporation of galaxies
  • · Replies 4 ·
Replies
4
Views
2K
Undergrad Some questions about Cosmic Microwave Background radiation
  • · Replies 13 ·
Replies
13
Views
7K
High School Trace methane in Uranus and Neptune, condensing into diamonds
  • · Replies 2 ·
Replies
2
Views
2K
Graduate Question regarding GR wrt potential energy
  • · Replies 63 ·
3
Replies
63
Views
6K