Emily Chan
As a result, superheavy elements are created. They go through radioactive decay to produce elements such as gold, silver, platinum, and uranium. A blast of light called a “kilonova” takes place when these elements decay.
The team thinks that the physical interactions that happen during neutron star mergers can impact light signals observed from Earth.
“How the neutrinos interact with the matter of the stars and eventually are emitted can impact the oscillations of the merged remnants of the two stars, which in turn can impact what the electromagnetic and gravitation wave signals of the merger look like when they reach us here on Earth,” said Espino.
If gravitation-wave detectors are created, they can be used to search for those differences in signals and interpret them.
Overall, the simulations helped provide insight into these stellar events and can serve as references for future experiments.
