This book explores the biggest gaps in our understanding of the universe. It describes how astronomers see and gather information and covers topics where knowledge is incomplete. Topics include dark matter, the Hubble constant/tension, deaths of massive stars, mysteries associated with black holes, neutron stars and binary/multiple systems.
Author(s): Nicole M. Lloyd-Ronning
Series: AAS-IOP Astronomy
Publisher: IOP Publishing
Year: 2022
Language: English
Pages: 164
City: Bristol
PRELIMS.pdf
Preface
Acknowledgement
Author biography
Nicole M Lloyd-Ronning
CH001.pdf
Chapter 1 Introduction
1.1 Solving Scientific Problems
1.1.1 The Covid-19 Vaccine
1.1.2 The Higgs Boson
1.1.3 The Handedness of Dolphins
1.2 Solving Astrophysical Mysteries—Deep Space Forensics
1.2.1 The Afterglow of the Big Bang—Cosmic Microwave Background Radiation
1.2.2 Solar Neutrinos
1.2.3 Pulsars
1.2.4 Exoplanets
1.2.5 Mysteries Throughout History
1.3 Further Reading
References
CH002.pdf
Chapter 2 How We See the Universe
2.1 Light
2.1.1 Spectral Lines
2.1.2 Continuum Light
2.2 Particles
2.2.1 Cosmic Rays
2.2.2 Neutrinos
2.3 Gravitational Waves
2.4 Looking Back in Time
2.5 Further Reading
References
CH003.pdf
Chapter 3 Inventory of the Universe—Something Is Missing!
3.1 A Note about Distance and Scale
3.2 Baryonic Matter
3.2.1 Matter Anti-matter Asymmetry
3.2.2 The Lithium Problem
3.2.3 Missing Baryons
3.3 Dark Matter
3.3.1 Rotation Curves
3.3.2 Galaxy Clusters
3.3.3 Gravitational Lensing
3.3.4 But Maybe We Just Don’t Understand Gravity
3.3.5 Are You Sure We Aren’t Just Missing a Bunch of Black Holes or Maybe Faint Gas or Something that Doesn’t Emit (much) Light?
3.3.6 So What’s Going On?
3.4 Dark Energy
3.4.1 Wha…?
3.5 Further Reading
References
CH004.pdf
Chapter 4 The Expansion of the Universe and the Hubble Tension
4.1 Standard Cosmological Model
4.2 Hubble’s Law
4.2.1 The Roller Coaster that Is the Hubble Constant Debate
4.2.2 Hubble Constant from the CMB
4.2.3 Hubble Constant from Type Ia SNe
4.2.4 Other Observations
4.2.5 Systematics
4.2.6 New Physics
4.3 Where to Go from Here
4.4 Further Reading
References
CH005.pdf
Chapter 5 The First Stars and Galaxies
5.1 The First Stars
5.1.1 A Clue: Reionization
5.1.2 Star Formation Efficiency Problem
5.1.3 Initial Mass Function
5.2 The First Galaxies
5.3 Further Reading
References
CH006.pdf
Chapter 6 Couples+
6.1 Bound or Interacting Stars
6.2 Binary Formation
6.2.1 Born Together
6.2.2 Mates—Coupling Up Later in Life
6.2.3 Evolving in a Binary System
6.2.4 Black Hole Binary Masses
6.3 Bound or Interacting Galaxies
6.3.1 Missing (or Too Many!) Satellites Problem
6.4 Further Reading
References
CH007.pdf
Chapter 7 How Massive Stars Die
7.1 Supernovae
7.1.1 Other Types of Supernovae
7.2 Gamma-ray Bursts
7.3 Further Reading
References
CH008.pdf
Chapter 8 Matter at Extreme Densities—Neutron Stars
8.1 Superdense Matter—The Neutron Star Equation of State
8.2 Mysteries Associated with ‘Ordinary’ Pulsars
8.2.1 Magnetars
8.3 Fast Radio Bursts
8.4 Neutron Star Mergers and Heavy Element Production
8.5 Further Reading
References
CH009.pdf
Chapter 9 And Then What? … Black Holes!
9.1 Stellar Mass Black Holes
9.1.1 The Mass Gaps
9.2 Intermediate Mass Black Holes—Where Are They?
9.3 Supermassive Black Holes
9.3.1 Early Universe Giants
9.4 Black Hole–Disk Phenomena
Jets
Tidal Disruption Events
9.5 Primordial Black Holes
9.6 Further Reading
References
CH010.pdf
Chapter 10 Looking Forward
10.1 Looking to the Future
10.1.1 The Future of Space Exploration
10.1.2 The Future of Instrumentation
10.2 Final Thoughts
10.3 Further Reading
References
