DOE Science Showcase - Supernovae

Core collapse supernovae are extraordinary stellar explosions that mark the death throes of massive stars, with mass greater than eight to ten times the mass of the Sun.  Stars with lesser mass may also explode if they accumulate enough mass from outside to start runaway nuclear fusion.  Such explosions are the dominant source of elements in the Universe between oxygen and iron and are believed to be responsible for half of the elements heavier than iron.  They are a key link in the origin of life in the Universe. 

DOE researchers and their collaborators have made major advances in observing and understanding supernovae of all types.  Exciting goals are being set for future research that will be possible with improved computer representations, more precise observations and their implications and the gathering and refinement of supernovae data.  

See additional resources and related links about supernovae behavior and theory.

"The NuSTAR high-energy X-ray observatory captured this image of Cassiopeia A..."
Image Credit: Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Related Research Information in DOE Databases

• In the OSTI Collections: Supernovae, Dr. William Watson 

• DOE PAGES^Beta –  journal articles and accepted manuscripts resulting from DOE funding.

• SciTech Connect – reports from DOE science, technology and engineering programs. 

• National Library of Energy^Beta – search results from across the DOE Complex. 

• Science.gov – search results from U.S. federal science agencies. 

• WorldWideScience.org – search results from global science agencies 

For additional information, see the OSTI Catalogue of Collections.

Additional Resources 

• Supernova Cosmology Project, LBL

• Core Collapse Supernova Modeling, ORNL

• Type IA Supernova Modeling, ORNL

• Thermonuclear Supernovae, University of Tennessee Knoxville

• Saul Perlmutter, Distant Supernovae, Dark Energy, and the Accelerating Expansion of the Universe, DOE R&D Accomplishments

• From Nautilus: “The Secret History of the Supernova at the Bottom of the Sea”, Science Springs

• A History of Supernova Discovery, Berkeley.edu, Interactive animation

• Berkeley Lab Scientists Recipients of 2015 Breakthrough Prizes, BNL

• The High-Altitude Water Cherenkov Observatory

• NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory, NASA

• The Nearby Supernova Factory, LBL

• NuSTAR helps untangle how stars explode, LLNL

• Cosmic Rays from Supernovae Proven to Hit Earth, Energy.gov

• Chandra X-Ray Observatory

• Stability lost as supernovae explode, ScienceDaily 

• In the OSTI Collections: Dark Matter and Dark Energy

• In the OSTI Collections: Gamma-Ray Bursts

• Dead star shines on, LLNL

 Visit the Science Showcase Archive.