Publications by authors named "Nicholas M Law"
The angular resolution of ground-based optical telescopes is limited by the degrading effects of the turbulent atmosphere. In the absence of an atmosphere, the angular resolution of a typical telescope is limited only by diffraction, i.e.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFType Ia supernovae are thought to result from a thermonuclear explosion of an accreting white dwarf in a binary system, but little is known of the precise nature of the companion star and the physical properties of the progenitor system. There are two classes of models: double-degenerate (involving two white dwarfs in a close binary system) and single-degenerate models. In the latter, the primary white dwarf accretes material from a secondary companion until conditions are such that carbon ignites, at a mass of 1.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFArticle Synopsis
- Type Ia supernovae are crucial for understanding the accelerated expansion of the Universe, yet many details about their origins and explosions remain unclear.
- Researchers believe these explosions result from white dwarfs in binary systems, but the nature of their companions is still uncertain.
- The study of supernova SN 2011fe in the galaxy M101 suggests its progenitor was likely a carbon-oxygen white dwarf with a main-sequence companion, confirmed by spectroscopic observations and pre-explosion images.