Open Questions in Massive Star Research across Cosmic Scales

TL;DR

This paper reviews major open questions in massive star research, emphasizing recent discoveries challenging existing models and highlighting the need for new approaches to understand their role in cosmic evolution.

Contribution

It identifies key unresolved issues in massive star evolution, discusses recent observational challenges, and suggests directions for future research and modeling improvements.

Findings

High metallicity and nitrogen enrichment in high-redshift galaxies challenge current models.

Recent discoveries in Wolf-Rayet stars and weak-wind problems suggest new physics is needed.

Large surveys and computational advances offer potential breakthroughs.

Abstract

Massive stars are the engines of the Cosmos, shaping their environments and driving galaxy evolution across cosmic time. Yet, this general textbook picture faces many challenges when trying to turn abstract insights into quantitative predictions. Recent discoveries, such the surprisingly high metallicity and early nitrogen enrichment in high-redshift galaxies discovered by JWST, are challenging current descriptions of massive star evolution and add new pieces to a puzzle that is yet everything but complete. The oncoming era of large surveys and advances in computational modeling create the potential to reach breakthroughs in our understanding. Yet, to resolve current problems and conflicting conclusions, we will also need to reconsider what we think we know. Are the objects we observe what we think they are? Are the models we use describing what is actually going on? And what can we learn from previous misconceptions? This short review highlights major open questions from individual stars and stellar systems back to the first galaxies while also discussing two examples - the weak-wind problem as well as the different flavours and impact of Wolf-Rayet stars - where recent discoveries might point in a new direction.