Multi-messenger astrophysics

Astro-COLIBRI
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Discussions around tools and discoveries in the novel domain of multi-messenger and time domain astrophysics. We'll highlight recent publications, discuss tools to faciliate observations and generally talk about the cool science behind the most violent explosions in the universe.

  1. 2h ago

    SN 2019rsq + two GWs: Rethinking Stellar Collapse

    In standard astrophysics, stellar collapse forms a remnant, and binary mergers take tens of millions to billions of years to inspiral and collide. But what happens when two gravitational wave signals occur just 7.1 hours apart in the exact same region of space as a newly exploding supernova? In this episode, we dive into a study identifying an unprecedented candidate triplet: two marginal gravitational wave (GW) candidates (S190910d and S190910h) aligned in 3D localization and distance with the stripped-envelope Type IIb supernova SN 2019rsq. We explore how a fragmenting collapsar disk could explain this cosmic double-hit and redefine our understanding of core-collapse events. The Cosmic Coincidence: How archival matching revealed two close-in-time public LIGO–Virgo triggers—S190910d and S190910h—separated by only 7.1 hours, with an estimated pairwise chance probability of just 7.6 \times 10^{-5}. The Anchor Event (SN 2019rsq): Why this rapidly evolving Type IIb supernova at \sim 140.6\text{ Mpc} (z \approx 0.0312) provides a consistent spatial and temporal anchor for the gravitational wave pair. Decoding the Signals: S190910d: Consistent with an asymmetric system of \sim 34\text{ }M_\odot + 3\text{ }M_\odot, where an accretion-grown fragment falls into a central black hole.S190910h: Recovered as a low-mass binary neutron star candidate (\sim 2.5\text{ }M_\odot + 1.3\text{ }M_\odot).The "Fragmenting Disk" Engine: How the gravitational instability of a neutrino-cooled accretion disk around a rapidly rotating collapsar can spawn multiple compact remnants at 100\text{--}300\text{ }R_g that inspiral on timescales of hours to days.Multi-Messenger Clues: Evaluating radio non-detections from ASKAP and VLASS (which rule out a long-lived, on-axis GRB 030329–like relativistic jet) and examining the auxiliary 5-day delayed burst, GRB 190915A.The Future of "Superkilonova" Searches: Contextualizing SN 2019rsq alongside other emerging candidate associations like SN 2025ulz/S250818k and SN 2025adtq/S251112cm. #### Key Takeaways Stellar collapse may not be a one-and-done event: Disk fragmentation allows multiple compact objects to form and merge within the lifetime of a single exploding star. High-value targets for multi-messenger astronomy: Temporally clustered, near-threshold GW alerts paired with wide-field optical surveys open a new window to investigate extreme rotating collapsars. ### Featured Reference Article: A temporally clustered gravitational wave pair and a Type IIb supernova Authors: Sheng Yang, Ting-Wan Chen, Weichangfeng Guo, Brian D. Metzger, Yuhao Zhang, et al. Preprint / Identifier: arXiv:2611.00440 [v1] Acknowledements: Podcast prepared with Google/Gemini Notebook. Illustration credits: Yang et al.

    SN 2019rsq + two GWs: Rethinking Stellar Collapse

  2. 4d ago

    The Lazuli Space Observatory: Time-Domain Astronomy’s Next Flagship

    In this episode, we dive into the Lazuli Space Observatory, a flagship space mission designed to fill the critical gap in tracking faint, fast-evolving cosmic transients. Featuring a 3-meter primary mirror in a 3:1 lunar resonant orbit, Lazuli combines flagship-class sensitivity with an ultra-fast target-of-opportunity (ToO) response time of less than 4 hours (and under 90 minutes in favorable scenarios)—one to two orders of magnitude faster than conventional space telescopes like Hubble or JWST. We explore how Lazuli will revolutionize our understanding of gravitational wave counterparts, exploding stars, black holes, and the expansion of the universe. Key Discussion Points & Highlights The Latency Bottleneck in Astronomy: Why ground telescopes are limited by day-night cycles and why existing space observatories take days to respond to transient alerts.Observatory Architecture: Lazuli’s 3m off-axis telescope, equipped with the Wide-field Context Camera (WCC) for broadband and narrowband imaging and an Integral Field Spectrograph (IFS) spanning 0.4–1.7 µm.Chasing Gravitational Wave Counterparts: Following up kilonovae from neutron star mergers detected during LIGO/Virgo/KAGRA’s O5 run and identifying heavy r-process element synthesis like strontium and yttrium.Fast Transients & Supernovae: Probing mysterious Fast Blue Optical Transients (FBOTs) such as AT2018cow, obtaining "flash spectroscopy" of young core-collapse supernovae within hours of explosion, and analyzing high-redshift Tidal Disruption Events (TDEs).Cosmology & Galactic Astrophysics: Measuring the Hubble constant (H_0) through strongly lensed supernovae and standard sirens, while conducting high-precision astrometry and period mapping for ultracompact binaries in our own Galaxy. Title: The Lazuli Space Observatory: Opportunities for Time-domain and Multi-messenger Astronomy Authors: Thomas Wevers, Thomas J. Maccarone, Antonella Palmese, David J. Sand, Suvi Gezari, Liliana Rivera Sandoval, John DiPalma, Griffin Hosseinzadeh, Taylor J. Hoyt, Mitchell Karmen, Jamie Kennea, Keerthi Kunnumkai, Saul Perlmutter, Mickael Rigault, Arpita Roy, Gudmundur Stefansson, and Fan Yang Yang Journal: Publications of the Astronomical Society of the Pacific (PASP), Vol. 138, Art. 105003 (2026) DOI: [10.1088/1538-3873/aeaf84](https://doi.org/10.1088/1538-3873/aeaf84) Acknowledements: Podcast prepared with Google/Gemini Notebook. Illustration credits: Schmidt Sciences

    The Lazuli Space Observatory: Time-Domain Astronomy’s Next Flagship

  3. Nov 4

    When a Magnetar Becomes a Black Hole: The Mystery of EP251129a

    In this episode, we dive into the discovery and multiwavelength analysis of EP251129a / GRB 251129A—a extragalactic fast X-ray transient located at redshift \\(z = 0.505\\). Detected independently by the Einstein Probe and SVOM/ECLAIRs, this event provides a rare window into the birth of a black hole, combining an ultra-long early X-ray plateau with an unusual off-axis radio afterglow. Key Topics Covered: The Initial Trigger & Detection: How wide-field X-ray space telescopes spotted EP251129a, triggering follow-up observations across the electromagnetic spectrum with Swift, Chandra, and the Very Large Array (VLA).The First X-Ray Plateau & Magnetar Collapse: Why an early \\(10^4\\)-second X-ray plateau followed by an abrupt steep decay and spectral softening signals a newborn millisecond magnetar undergoing gravitational-wave-dominated spin-down before collapsing into a black hole.The Second Plateau & Fallback Accretion: How stellar material falling back onto the newly formed black hole powers a second, extended X-ray plateau out to ~60 days via Blandford-Znajek energy injection.The Off-Axis Jet & Delayed Radio Peak: Why the radio afterglow rose rapidly (\\(F_\nu \propto t^{1.9-2.5}\\)) and peaked late at 36–40 days, providing strong evidence for an off-axis two-component jet structure.Connecting EFXTs to Ultra-Long GRBs: How this single event bridges the gap between fast X-ray transients, ultra-long gamma-ray bursts, and massive-star explosions. ### Article Reference Title: EP251129a: A Fast X-ray Transient with Two X-Ray Plateaus and Its Off-axis Afterglow Authors: Yue Wu, Ailing Wang, Senlin Pang, Yu-Han Yang, Biao Zhang, Zi-Gao Dai, Tao An, Jin-Jun Geng, Xue-Feng Wu, Hui Sun, Di Xiao, Jia Ren, Chen Deng, Yehao Cheng, Fa-Yin Wang, Yuan-Pei Yang, Eleonora Troja, Brendan O’Connor, Wen-Jie Zhang, Yuan Liu, Weimin Yuan, Yahui Jiang, Yun Wang, Cuiyuan Dai, Hucheng Ding, Tao Wu, and Kangrui Ni Source: arXiv:2610.34810v1 (October 2026) Acknowledements: Podcast prepared with Google/Gemini Notebook. Illustration credits: Wu et al.

    When a Magnetar Becomes a Black Hole: The Mystery of EP251129a

  4. Nov 2

    Off-Nuclear Cosmic Fireworks: The Curious Case of EP241021a

    In this episode, we explore the extraordinary extragalactic event EP241021a, a peculiar Fast X-Ray Transient (FXT) discovered by the Einstein Probe on October 21, 2024, at a redshift of \\(z = 0.748\\). Featuring a long X-ray plateau and multiple optical rebrightenings, EP241021a challenged standard stellar explosion and jet afterglow models. Deep late-time observations using the Hubble Space Telescope (HST) and Gemini-North revealed that the event occurred in a dwarf starburst galaxy, positioned at a clear off-nuclear offset of \\(0.95 \pm 0.13\text{ kpc}\\) from the galactic center. Host-subtracted optical light curves show that the optical rebrightening abruptly ended around 47 days post-trigger, followed by a sharp power-law drop that synchronized with a similar drop in X-rays. This sudden double-band decline points toward jet shut-off, requiring a month of continuous accretion—a feature characteristic of a Tidal Disruption Event (TDE) rather than a core-collapse supernova. We examine the leading theories behind this rare event, including a post-supernova micro-TDE in a binary system (where a newborn compact object is kicked into tidally disrupting its companion star), as well as alternative scenarios involving an intermediate-mass black hole (IMBH) or dynamical interactions in a dense stellar cluster. Key Highlights & Takeaways: Discovery & Location: EP241021a was triggered by the Einstein Probe, with high-resolution HST imaging confirming its location in the disk of a young dwarf starburst galaxy (\\(M_\star \approx 2.7 \times 10^8\text{ M}_\odot\\)) offset from the nucleus.The Smoking Gun: A synchronous, steep drop in both optical and X-ray emission at \\(\sim 47\\) days post-trigger signals jet shut-off from a persistently accreting compact object.Favored Model: The combination of an off-nuclear location, starburst environment, and month-long accretion slightly favors a binary micro-TDE, triggered when a supernova's natal kick drives a compact object toward its binary companion. Article Reference: Sun, L., Shu, X., Zhu, J., Jiang, N., Zhang, B., Chen, J.-H., Dai, L., Ding, H., Jin, C., Lu, W., Shen, R.-F., Xu, F., Yang, L., Yu, Y., Yuan, W., Li, D., Xu, D., Wang, T., Yang, H., & Zhang, W. (2026). EP241021a as An Off-nuclear Month-duration Transient in a Dwarf Starburst Galaxy. arXiv:2610.34217v1. Acknowledements: Podcast prepared with Google/Gemini Notebook. Illustration credits: Sun et al.

    Off-Nuclear Cosmic Fireworks: The Curious Case of EP241021a

  5. Oct 30

    2.6 Sigma: Super-Kamiokande’s First Indication of Ancient Supernova Neutrinos

    In this episode, we dive into a landmark result from the Super-Kamiokande Collaboration: the first experimental indication (2.6\sigma significance) of electron antineutrinos from the Diffuse Supernova Neutrino Background (DSNB). Also known as supernova relic neutrinos, this faint, steady stream of particles represents the collective glow of every core-collapse supernova that has occurred throughout cosmic history. Key Discussion Points & Highlights: What is the DSNB? Unlike rare burst neutrinos from single local supernovae, the DSNB is a continuous, isotropic flux accumulated from billions of stellar collapses across the observable universe.The 5,000-Day Search: Analyzing 5,003.0 days of data spanning six operational phases between 2008 and 2026 in Japan's underground Super-Kamiokande detector.The Gadolinium Game-Changer: How dissolving gadolinium compound into pure water dramatically boosted delayed neutron tagging efficiency up to ~60–70%, helping researchers suppress atmospheric neutrino and spallation backgrounds.The Main Result: A spectral fit reveals a best-fit flux of 3.6^{+1.6}_{-1.5}\text{ cm}^{-2}\text{ s}^{-1} for neutrino energies E_\nu > 13.3\text{ MeV}, disfavoring the background-only null hypothesis at a 99.5\% confidence level (2.6\sigma).Cosmological & Astrophysical Impact: What measuring this cosmic background teaches us about core-collapse mechanisms, star formation rates, and black hole formation fractions across cosmic time. ### Article Reference Title: Indication of Electron Antineutrinos from the Diffuse Supernova Neutrino Background Authors: K. Abe et al. (Super-Kamiokande Collaboration) Identifier: arXiv:2610.35619v1 [astro-ph.HE] (Dated: October 27, 2026) Acknowledements: Podcast prepared with Google/Gemini Notebook. Illustration credits: The Asahi Shimbun/Getty

    2.6 Sigma: Super-Kamiokande’s First Indication of Ancient Supernova Neutrinos

  6. Oct 16

    Supernovae, TDEs, and Scintillation: How ASKAP and Rubin Are Mapping the Variable Universe

    In this episode, we dive into how astronomers are combining the power of the Australian Square Kilometre Array Pathfinder (ASKAP) and the Vera C. Rubin Observatory to capture the dynamic, ever-changing sky in real time. Historically, optical and gravitational-wave observatories issued rapid alerts, but radio astronomy lacked automated, large-scale, real-time alert infrastructure. Now, a long-term monitoring program (project AS331) targets Rubin’s Deep Drilling Fields (DDFs), taking 3-hour radio snapshots approximately every 10 days to achieve a sensitivity of \\(\sim 60\ \mu\text{Jy}\\). This complementary survey automatically processes and streams radio data to the global astronomical community in near-real-time without human intervention. Episode Highlights & Key Discoveries: Bridging Optical and Radio Astronomy: How contemporaneous, non-coordinated radio surveys solve the bottleneck of follow-up observations for millions of optical alerts.Tidal Disruption Events (TDEs): Updated high-cadence light curves for AT2018hyz, revealing late-time radio flaring and scintillation effects that constrain the outflow size.Supernova Interaction: Modelling circumstellar material interactions around the Type IIb supernova SN2024abfo.New Cosmic Discoveries: The detection of ASKAP J095711.5+051205 (a candidate optical-less TDE in a poststarburst galaxy) and ASKAP J005026.4-422958 (an ongoing Extreme Scattering Event caused by plasma lensing). ### Article Reference Title: ASKAP Monitoring of the Rubin Deep Drilling Fields Authors: Dougal Dobie, James Freeburn, Iris de Ruiter, Katie Auchettl, James Coulson, Brent Miszalski, Anais Möller, and Nikhil Sarin Identifier: arXiv:2610.13011v1 Acknowledements: Podcast prepared with Google/Gemini Notebook. Illustration credits: CSIRO

    Supernovae, TDEs, and Scintillation: How ASKAP and Rubin Are Mapping the Variable Universe

  7. Oct 12

    JWST and MeerKAT Team Up: Uncovering the Most Distant Fast Radio Burst Yet

    Fast Radio Bursts (FRBs) are millisecond-duration radio signals originating from deep space. In this episode, we explore the groundbreaking discovery of FRB 20240304B, detected by the MeerKAT radio telescope in South Africa as part of the MeerTRAP survey. Subsequent near-infrared observations with the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) pinpointed its host galaxy at an unprecedented spectroscopic redshift of z = 2.148 — tracing the signal back to just 3 billion years after the Big Bang. Key Talking Points Breaking Distance Records: Prior to this discovery, the highest confirmed redshift for an FRB host galaxy was z ~ 1.016. FRB 20240304B more than doubles this distance record, allowing astronomers to probe ionized gas across roughly 80% of cosmic history.The Host Galaxy Profile: Deep imaging and spectroscopy from JWST revealed that the host is a low-mass, actively star-forming, metal-poor dwarf galaxy dominated by a young stellar population.Clues to the FRB Engine: The host's intense star formation and low metallicity support a young magnetar (a highly magnetized neutron star) as the burst progenitor, making long-delay origin models like neutron star mergers far less likely.Intergalactic Obstacles & Hidden Bursts: The signal shows significant pulse scatter broadening and dispersion acquired while passing through foreground plasma (including the Virgo Cluster). This high degree of scattering suggests that many distant FRBs are currently missed by existing radio surveys. ### Article Reference Caleb, M., Nanayakkara, T., Stappers, B. W., Pastor-Marazuela, I., Khrykin, I. S., Glazebrook, K., Tejos, N., Prochaska, J. X., Rajwade, K., Mas-Ribas, L., Driessen, L. N., Fong, W., Gordon, A. C., Hoffmann, J. L., James, C. W., Jankowski, F., Kahinga, L., Kramer, M., Simha, S., Barr, E. D., Bezuidenhout, M. C., Deng, X., Lin, Z., Marnoch, L., Martin, C. D., Nugent, A., Shaji, K., & Tian, J. (2026). A fast radio burst at redshift 2, three billion years after the Big Bang. Science, DOI: [10.1126/science.adz2675](https://doi.org/10.1126/science.adz2675). Acknowledements: Podcast prepared with Google/Gemini Notebook. Illustration credits: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, Themiya Nanayakkara (USYD); Image Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI)

    JWST and MeerKAT Team Up: Uncovering the Most Distant Fast Radio Burst Yet

  8. Oct 8

    GRB 221009A: Measuring Relativistic Jets using Radio Interferometry

    In this episode, we explore high-precision Very Long Baseline Interferometry (VLBI) radio observations of GRB 221009A, the brightest gamma-ray burst ever detected. Using the Global-VLBI network at 5 GHz between 231 and 750 days post-burst, an international team of astronomers directly measured the expanding projected image size and relativistic velocity of the blast wave. Their direct size measurements provide a powerful test of theoretical afterglow physics, revealing that existing multi-wavelength models struggle to reproduce the physical size evolution of the burst. Key Takeaways & Discussion Points: Direct Size & Expansion Measurements: Global-VLBI observations achieved sub-milliarcsecond resolution, resolving the source size with relative uncertainties of 13% and 30% at 231 and 391 days post-burst. Challenging Current Theories: None of the published multi-wavelength afterglow models in the literature have best-fitting parameters that match the observed 5 GHz size evolution within \\(2\sigma\\), demonstrating that direct VLBI imaging is essential to break parameter degeneracies in gamma-ray burst physics. ### Article Reference Title: Comparing the size evolution of GRB 221009A with afterglow models Authors: S. Giarratana, O. S. Salafia, B. Marcote, Z. Paragi, M. Giroletti, G. Ghirlanda, L. Nava, A. van der Horst, J. K. Leung, L. Rhodes, P. G. Edwards, M. Pérez-Torres, and J. Yang Publication Context: Astronomy & Astrophysics manuscript Acknowledements: Podcast prepared with Google/Gemini Notebook. Illustration credits: NASA/JPL

    GRB 221009A: Measuring Relativistic Jets using Radio Interferometry
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Discussions around tools and discoveries in the novel domain of multi-messenger and time domain astrophysics. We'll highlight recent publications, discuss tools to faciliate observations and generally talk about the cool science behind the most violent explosions in the universe.

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