Description of Activity
Invited talk on "Late-time Observations of Type Ia Supernovae with the Hubble Space Telescope".Most Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) are only followed up for several weeks to, at most, a hundred days past maximum light. Over the last few years, late-time observations with the Hubble Space Telescope 800-2000 days past maximum have revealed fresh insights into the physics of the progenitors and explosions of these SNe. So far, we have shown that: (1) the optical and NIR light curves of normal SNe Ia slow down at ~800 days and once more at ~2000 days, consistent with the ejecta being heated by long-lived radioactive decay chains of iron-group elements; (2) there might be a correlation between the rate at which the light curves slow down and the intrinsic luminosity of the SNe Ia; (3) normal SNe Ia go through a year-long plateau in the NIR between 150-500 days post maximum; but (4) such a plateau is not observed in 1991bg-like SNe Ia. In my talk, I will summarize these discoveries and discuss their impact on our understanding of the progenitors and the explosion physics of SNe Ia.
| Period | 8 Nov 2024 |
|---|---|
| Held at | Royal Astronomical Society, United Kingdom |
| Degree of Recognition | International |