NAI
2014 Annual Science Report
Arizona State University
Reporting | SEP 2013 – DEC 2014
Astrophysical Controls - Task 6 - Determine Which Elemental or Isotopic Ratios Correlate With Key Elements
Project Summary
Abundances of both common and trace elements can have substantial effects on the habitability of stellar systems. We study the formation and composition of structures in supernova explosions that deliver isotopes that influence habitability to material that will form new stars and planets. We examine ratios of elements that have substantial effects of the mineralogy and interiors of planets. The relative abundances of common elements vary substantially among nearby stars, and we find that the impact of this on a star’s evolution can change the amount of time its planets are habitable by large factors.
Project Progress
Patrick Young (ASU) and Chris Fryer (Los Alamos National Laboratory) have started a new set of 3D supernova simulations for progenitor stars of 10 – 40 solar masses and metallicities of 0.1 and 1 times solar. These will be added to the existing suite of models produced by this project used to study nucleosynthetic yields and structure formation in core collapse supernovae. Young and Jack Sexton (ASU) produced a set of data-mining and visualization tools for the 3D simulations. This simulation library and the analysis tools will be available to support any future research on this topic.
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PROJECT INVESTIGATORS:
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PROJECT MEMBERS:
Patrick Young
Project Investigator
Chris Fryer
Collaborator
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RELATED OBJECTIVES:
Objective 1.1
Formation and evolution of habitable planets.
Objective 3.1
Sources of prebiotic materials and catalysts