Gravitational Wave Data Analysis, Black Hole & Neutron Star Mergers, Gravitational Wave Sources & Their Electromagnetic Counterparts
Image Credit: NSF/LIGO/Sonoma State University/A. Simonnet
As a discipline, astronomy is constantly being pushed forward by new technologies that transform how we observe the Universe. Multi-messenger astronomy is the synthesis of observations using light, gravitational waves, and astro particles. Combining different information from different types of signals allows us to better understand the underlying physical processes that govern how astrophysical systems evolve and change, and helps us get a better handle on the uncertainties and statistics that are inherent to every observation we make. Additionally, numerical simulations are another type of “messenger” that can be combined with observations to better understand astrophysical phenomena. In CIERA, we have broad expertise and interest in multi-messenger astronomy, particularly at the interface of electromagnetic and gravitational-wave observations.
Research at CIERA
Compact objects, such as black holes, neutron stars, and white dwarfs, often exist in pairs which eventually merge. These systems are strong sources of gravitational waves, and their nature and the environment in which they reside has a profound effect on possible associated electromagnetic signatures.
Professor Fong’s group looks for EM counterparts to GW events with observing programs in Hawaii, Chile, and Arizona. They are particularly interested in studying short gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) whose progenitors are likely neutron star mergers with other neutron stars or black holes.
Professor Fragione studies mergers of black holes and neutron stars in star clusters and in hierarchical configurations as a source of gravitational waves, relevant for the LIGO-Virgo collaboration and the LISA mission.
Opportunity
Deadline: 11:59pm, March 20, 2023
REACH (Research Experiences in Astronomy at CIERA for High School Students) is a highly interactive, 3-week program (with an optional 3-week extension) that provides high school students experience with astronomy research in an atmosphere of team-style learning, hands-on training, and mentorship from professional scientists. Students enrolled in the program engage in astronomy research projects with CIERA astronomers.
News




Gallery

Star Collapses into NEW Black Hole
Star Collapses into NEW Black Hole
Affectionately referred to as the B.O.A.T. (“brightest of all time”), the powerful explosion occurred approximately 2.4 billion light-years away from Earth, in the direction of the constellation Sagitta. Astrophysicists, including Jillian Rastinejad, first detected the GRB, which was a few hundred seconds in duration, in gamma-ray light on Oct. 9. Read the full Northwestern News
National Science Foundation

Gemini North image (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)

Gemini North image (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)
This Gemini North image, superimposed on an image taken with the Hubble Space Telescope, shows the telltale near-infrared afterglow of a kilonova produced by a long GRB (GRB 211211A). This discovery challenges the prevailing theory that long GRBs exclusively come from supernovae, the end-of-life explosions of massive stars. Read the full Northwestern News story: December
International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/M. Zamani; NASA/ESA

artist’s impression of a kilonova produced by two colliding neutron stars (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)

artist’s impression of a kilonova produced by two colliding neutron stars (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)
This artist’s impression shows a kilonova produced by two colliding neutron stars. While studying the aftermath of a long gamma-ray burst (GRB), two independent teams of astronomers using a host of telescopes in space and on Earth, including the Gemini North telescope on Hawai‘i and the Gemini South telescope in Chile, have uncovered the unexpected
NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/J. da Silva/Spaceengine

A broader view of GRB 211211A’s location (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)

A broader view of GRB 211211A’s location (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)
A broader view of GRB 211211A’s location, circled in red, captured using three filters on Hubble’s Wide Field Camera 3. Read the full Northwestern News story: December 7, 2022
NASA, ESA, Rastinejad et al. (2022), Troja et al. (2022), and Gladys Kober (Catholic Univ. of America)

Gamma-ray burst 211211A (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)

Gamma-ray burst 211211A (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)
Gamma-ray burst 211211A, the location of which is circled in red, erupted on the outskirts of a spiral galaxy around 1 billion light-years away in the constellation Boötes. The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope captured the image with its Wide Field Camera 3 and Advanced Camera for Surveys. Read the full Northwestern News story: December 7,
NASA, ESA, Rastinejad et al. (2022), and Gladys Kober (Catholic Univ. of America)

Illustration: two neutron stars begin to merge (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)

Illustration: two neutron stars begin to merge (Surprise kilonova upends established understanding of long gamma-ray bursts)
Two neutron stars begin to merge in this illustration, blasting a jet of high-speed particles and producing a cloud of debris. Scientists think these kinds of events are factories for a significant portion of the universe’s heavy elements, including gold. Read the full Northwestern News story: December 7, 2022
A. Simonnet (Sonoma State University) and NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center
People
Core Faculty





Vicky Kalogera
Daniel I. Linzer Distinguished University Professor, Director of CIERA

Shane Larson
Research Professor, Associate Director of CIERA


Associate Faculty





Suzan van der Lee
Professor, Director of Graduate Studies, Director of Computing
Postdocs









Research Staff

Graduate Students












