Interstellar Medium, Molecular Clouds, Star Formation & Evolution, Supernovae & Their Remnants, Long Gamma-ray Bursts, Cosmic Rays
Image credit: ALMA / ESO / NAOJ / NRAO / Alexandra Angelich, NRAO / AUI / NSF.
Stars are the fundamental building blocks and probes of the Universe. They are formed in stellar nurseries enshrouded by dust and gas, and end their lives in violent explosions, creating some of the most captivating events one can witness. Faculty in CIERA study, model, and observe many stages of a star’s life from birth to death, the planets formed around them, how they impact their environments, as well as the compact remnants they leave behind.
Research at CIERA
Evolving to the end states of stellar evolution, Professor Fong’s team uses radio and optical observations to study and model relativistic explosions called gamma-ray bursts and their host galaxy environments, probing star formation from the local neighborhood to the high-redshift Universe. Professor Margutti’s group uses multi-wavelength observations to study the last chapter of the stellar story including gamma-ray bursts, the most luminous supernovae, and new classes of enigmatic transients. Professor Tchekhovskoy uses state-of-the-art simulations to study the formation of relativistic jets in core-collapse gamma ready busts.
Opportunities
Deadline: 11:59pm, December 1, 2020
The Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics (CIERA) at Northwestern University invites applications for CIERA Postdoctoral Fellowships. CIERA Fellows have the opportunity to pursue an independent research program and benefit from a diverse and dynamic intellectual environment.
Deadline: 11:59pm, December 1, 2020
Northwestern University expects to offer postdoctoral associate positions in observational astronomy and astrophysics starting in fall 2021. These positions will be part of the Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics (CIERA) at Northwestern. Successful applicants will benefit from interaction with a broad interdisciplinary group of researchers and will be immersed in a diverse and dynamic intellectual environment.
Deadline: 11:59pm, December 1, 2020
Northwestern University expects to offer postdoctoral associate positions in theoretical astronomy and astrophysics starting in fall 2021. These positions will be part of the Center for Interdisciplinary Exploration and Research in Astrophysics (CIERA) at Northwestern. Successful applicants will benefit from interaction with a broad interdisciplinary group of researchers and will be immersed in a diverse and dynamic intellectual environment.
Deadline: 11:59pm, December 31, 2020
The Northwestern Astronomy PhD is designed to provide students with a broad training in astronomy while enabling them to get started quickly with their graduate research. The Astronomy PhD is a flexible program that allows students to complement their astronomy training with a selection of physics courses or courses from other quantitative disciplines such as
Deadline: 11:59pm, December 31, 2020
The Department of Physics and Astronomy offers two different PhD degrees designed to best train students in their chosen discipline. For most branches of physics, students should enroll in the Physics PhD. Students interested in astronomy or astrophysics may apply for the Astronomy PhD. For applications submitted in Fall 2020, GREs (general and physics) are not required.
News
Gallery
Kilonova Explosions and Magnetars
Kilonova Explosions and Magnetars
Professor Wen-fai Fong is interviewed for The Cosmic Companion and talks about her work studying kilonova explosions and collisions of neutron stars.
- Science
GRB 200522A
GRB 200522A
This image shows the glow from a kilonova caused by the merger of two neutron stars. The kilonova, whose peak brightness reaches up to 10,000 times that of a classical nova, appears as a bright spot (indicated by the arrow) to the upper left of the host galaxy. The merger of the neutron stars is
- Science
Josiah Schwab; Astrophysics Seminar Recording
Josiah Schwab; Astrophysics Seminar Recording
Dr. Josiah Schwab presents “1 + 1 = 1: Single White Dwarfs from Double White Dwarf Mergers.” Dr. Schwab is a postdoctoral scholar at UC Santa Cruz. This seminar is part of the Astrophysics Seminar series at CIERA.
CIERA
- Event,
- Science
SN 2019ehk
SN 2019ehk
Artist’s interpretation of the calcium-rich supernova 2019ehk. Shown in orange is the calcium-rich material created in the explosion. Purple coloring represents gas shedded by the star right before the explosion, which then produced bright X-ray emission when the material collided with the supernova shockwave. Learn more: Calcium-rich supernova examined with X-rays for first time
Aaron M. Geller, Northwestern University
GRB181123B
GRB181123B
The afterglow of GRB181123B, captured by the Gemini North telescope. Learn more: Short gamma ray burst leaves most-distant optical afterglow ever detected
International Gemini Observatory/NOIRLab/NSF/AURA/K. Paterson & W. Fong (Northwestern University).
SN2019yvq in the Host Galaxy NGC 4441
SN2019yvq in the Host Galaxy NGC 4441
Zwicky Transient Facility composite image of SN2019yvq (blue dot in the center of the image) in the host galaxy NGC 4441 (large yellow galaxy in the center of the image), which is nearly 140 million light-years away from Earth. SN 2019yvq exhibited a rarely observed ultraviolet flash in the days after the star exploded. Learn
ZTF/A. A. Miller (Northwestern University) and D. Goldstein (Caltech)
People
Core Astronomy Faculty
Faculty
Kari Frank
Director of Operations of CIERA, Research Assistant Professor
Postdocs
Adam Miller
LSST Data Science Fellow; Data Science Fellowship Program Director
