Black Holes and Neutron Stars - A Merger in Space

Overview

Explore the groundbreaking discoveries of colliding black holes and neutron stars in this 42-minute panel discussion from the World Science Festival. Delve into the implications of these cosmic mergers, their creations, and how they're reshaping our understanding of the universe. Learn about gravitational waves, their detection methods, and the advent of multi-messenger gravitational wave astronomy. Discover the intricacies of stellar evolution, LIGO's functionality, and the significance of the 'chirp' in observing these phenomena. Gain insights into determining mass and spin from black hole observations, the SWIFT experiment, and the coordination of multiple observations for stellar events. Join astronomers and astrophysicists as they unravel the mysteries of these colossal cosmic occurrences and their impact on our view of the cosmos.

Syllabus

- Participant Intros.
- Is the detection of gravitation waves humankind’s greatest achievement?
- The first confirmed discovery of an Einstein black hole using gravitational waves.
- What happens when neutron stars collide?
- What is a quark?
- How do pairs of black holes or neutron stars collide?
- Stellar evolution.
- What is LIGO doing, how does it work?
- What are gravitation waves and what does their detection reveal to us?
- Simulation of how gravitational waves are formed from the collision of neutron stars.
- What is the ‘chirp’ and what does it tell us?
- How can pairs of neutron stars create tides, and what does it tells about the state of matter?
- How do you determine mass and spin from observations of black holes?
- What was observed in the SWIFT experiment?
- How do you make multiple coordinated observations of stellar events like the collision of neutron stars or black holes?