SNe Ia: Can Chandrasekhar Mass Explosions Reproduce the Observed Zoo?

TL;DR

This paper reviews the current understanding of Type Ia supernovae, exploring whether explosions near the Chandrasekhar mass can explain their diverse observed properties, with implications for stellar evolution and cosmology.

Contribution

It provides an overview of observational and theoretical evidence supporting Chandrasekhar mass explosions as a common progenitor scenario for SNe Ia.

Findings

Most SNe Ia can be explained by thermonuclear explosions near the Chandrasekhar mass.

The current models are consistent with the observed diversity of SNe Ia.

The nuclear physics underlying SNe Ia supports the Chandrasekhar mass explosion hypothesis.

Abstract

The question of the nature of the progenitor of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) is important both for our detailed understanding of stellar evolution and for their use as cosmological probes of the dark energy. Much of the basic features of SNe Ia can be understood directly from the nuclear physics, a fact which Gerry would have appreciated. We present an overview of the current observational and theoretical situation and show that it not incompatible with most SNe Ia being the results of thermonuclear explosions near the Chandrasekhar mass.