CTIO  > Science Talks  >  Abstracts

Nathan Smith
University of Arizona
& Gemini South Visiting Astronomer
 

"Supernovae with dense Circumstellar Material"
 

I will discuss the unusual class of Type IIn supernovae with narrow hydrogen-lines, which arise when the blast wave crashes into dense material ejected by the star shortly before core-collapse.  The pre-supernova mass loss has important implications for the evolution and fates of massive stars.