Bridging Physics and Observations of Black Hole-Powered Events

Ore Gottlieb (Flatiron Research/THEA)

October 02, 2023

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Abstract: Black hole (BH)-powered transients are abundant in the Universe, originating from compact object mergers, collapsing stars, galactic cores and more. Upcoming LIGO runs and new electromagnetic detectors, such as LSST and ULTRASAT position BH-powered multi-messenger events at the forefront of astrophysics. I will review the significance of these events in light of the first binary neutron star merger detection, GW170817. One of the primary challenges in studying BH-powered explosions lies in the vast dynamical range between the BH and the emission site, which has hindered theoretical models from elucidating the underlying physics based on observations. I will present the first such models through state-of-the-art simulations that follow outflows from newly formed BHs to the photosphere. I will illustrate how simulations of collapsing stars, which give rise to BHs and relativistic jets, offer unique opportunities to explore a wide range of cutting-edge astrophysical phenomena in an unprecedented manner: heavy element nucleosynthesis, the evolution of relativistic jets, natal properties of BHs, a variety of cosmic fireworks, and predictions of new gravitational wave sources. These predictions will be essential for extracting the physics of transients from future gravitational wave/electromagnetic detections. I will conclude by demonstrating how such models recently enabled us to decipher the origin of the mysterious new class of long gamma-ray bursts associated with kilonovae.