Stellar astrophysics I

Basic knowledge of stellar properties and evolution;

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1. Observational properties of stars, HR diagram and the classification of stars.

2. Basic physical description of stellar structure: hydrostatic equilibrium, equation of state, virial theorem, polytropic models and Lane Emden equation, thermal equilibrium, energy production and equilibrium, energy transport with radiation and convection, characteristic time-scales.

3. Stellar formation: Jeans mass, cloud collapse phases, protostars and entrance on the main sequence of the HR diagram.

4. Properties of stars on the main sequence of the HR diagram.

5. Evolution of stars after the main sequence of the HR diagram, helium ignition, higher cycles of nuclear burning, supernova explosion.

6. Final stages of stellar evolution.

7. Variable stars, binary stars.

8. Open and globular stellar clusters.

9. Methods for stellar distance determination.

Students will learn:
- stellar properties and classifications
- energy generation and transfer within the stars
- properties and dynamics of star clusters
At the end of the course students should have gained enough knowledge to follow the course on Stellar Astrophysics II.

1. Introduction to Stellar Astrophysics - LeBlanck (2010) Catalogue E-version
2. An Introduction to the Theory of Stellar Structure and Evolution (2nd Edition) – Dina Prialnik (2010) Catalogue E-version
3. An Introduction to Modern Astrophysics (2nd Edition) - Caroll and Ostlie (2017) Catalogue E-version

• written tests, writen exam
• oral exam

Dr. Tanja Petrushevska je docentka za področje fizika na Univerzi v Novi Gorici.

Dr. Tanja Petrushevska is an assistant professor of physics at the University of Nova Gorica. Her research interests lie in the field of observational astrophysics and cosmology, especially time domain astronomy. Her research has showed the feasibility of searches for strongly lensed supernovae with ground-based facilities and resulted in the discovery of five of the most distant core-collapse supernovae with implications on the volumetric core-collapse rates to very high redshifts. It has furthermore showed the utility of supernovae for cosmological studies, by investigating the properties of the strongly lensed and very distant supernova. As part of the intermediate Palomar Transient Factory, she has contributed to the discovery of supernovae and their study, including the first resolved, multiply-imaged supernova Ia and the first supernova forming a compact neutron star binary. Her current research also includes studying tidal disruption flares and searching for short gamma-ray bursts from supernovae induced by axion-like particles which are candidates for dark matter.

Selected publications:

1. High-redshift supernova rates measured with the gravitational telescope A1689. T. Petrushevska, R. Amanullah, A. Goobar, S. Fabbro, J. Johansson, T. Kjellsson, C. Lidman, K. Paech, J. Richard, H. Dahle, R. Ferretti, J. P. Kneib, M. Limousin, J. Nordin and V. Stanishev, A&A, Volume 594, A54, 21 pp, (2016).

2. Testing for redshift evolution of Type Ia supernovae using the strongly lensed PS1- 10afx at z =
   1.4. T. Petrushevska, R. Amanullah, M. Bulla, M. Kromer, R. Ferretti, A. Goobar and S. Papadogiannakis. A&A, vol. 603, A136, (2017).

3. iPTF16geu: A multiply-imaged gravitationally lensed Type Ia supernova. A. Goobar, 30 additional authors including T. Petrushevska, Science, vol. 356, 6335, 291-295 (2017).

4. Searching for supernovae in the multiply-imaged galaxies behind the gravitational telescope A370. T. Petrushevska, D. J. Lagattuta, R. Amanullah, A. Goobar, L. Hangard, S. Fabbro, C. Lidman, K. Paech, J. Richard, and J. P. Kneib, A&A vol. 614, A103, (2018)

5. A hot and fast ultra-stripped supernova that likely formed a compact neutron star binary K. De, 25 additional authors including T. Petrushevska, Science, vol. 362, 6411, (2018).

6. Prospects for observing strongly lensed supernovae behind Hubble Frontier Fields galaxy clusters with the James Webb Space Telescope. T. Petrushevska, T. Okamura, R. Kawamata, L. Hangard, G. Mahler and A. Goobar, Astronomy Reports, vol. 62, 12, (2018).