Project description
Catching radio flashes from neutron star mergers
Neutron stars are dense, but their maximum mass is still unknown. When two collide, they can form either a black hole or a magnetar (an ultra-magnetised, rapidly spinning neutron star), depending on their mass, spin, and magnetic energy. Detecting the brief signals from these events can reveal physics under extreme conditions. Supported by the ERC, the QuickBlitz project aims to capture the short-lived radio flashes that follow neutron star collisions. Researchers will track these rare events and search for blitzars, bursts from collapsing magnetars. A survey of radio transients will also help confirm these associations, shedding light on neutron star lifetimes and limits.
Objective
Neutron stars are the densest objects in the Universe, but an ongoing mystery is how massive can they get? By examining what happens when two neutron stars merge, we can help unravel this mystery. Some mergers will leave behind a black hole, while others instead make an even more massive neutron star. This massive neutron star will be spinning exceptionally fast and have a huge magnetic field (known as a magnetar). How long this magnetar lives completely depends on its mass, its spin energy and its magnetism. By studying this magnetar, we can learn about the maximum mass of neutron stars and emission mechanisms in extreme environments.
By studying emission in X-rays and optical wavelengths following these mergers, we have seen observational features associated with magnetars, but these features are not conclusive. Newly formed magnetars are predicted to give bright, short duration, flashes of coherent radio emission. If the magnetar is too massive, it will collapse to a black hole with its magnetic energy being released as a burst of radio emission – these sources are called Blitzars. Excitingly, I have made a first candidate detection of a radio flash following the likely merger of two neutron stars.
The goal of QuickBlitz is to search for coherent radio emission following the merger of two neutron stars, advancing our fundamental understanding of neutron star behaviour at extreme masses and magnetic fields. Neutron star mergers power gravitational wave emission and a short burst of gamma-rays. By automatically triggering on these, QuickBlitz will obtain radio observations that will be used to study the origin and emission mechanism of coherent radio flashes. Many of these mergers are poorly localised, so it is essential to know the underlying population of radio transients to confirm associations between radio transients and neutron star mergers. Thus, QuickBlitz will also conduct a deep legacy survey for radio transients, with durations of seconds to minutes.
Fields of science (EuroSciVoc)
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
CORDIS classifies projects with EuroSciVoc, a multilingual taxonomy of fields of science, through a semi-automatic process based on NLP techniques. See: The European Science Vocabulary.
This project's classification has been human-validated.
Keywords
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Project’s keywords as indicated by the project coordinator. Not to be confused with the EuroSciVoc taxonomy (Fields of science)
Programme(s)
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
Multi-annual funding programmes that define the EU’s priorities for research and innovation.
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HORIZON.1.1 - European Research Council (ERC)
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Topic(s)
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Calls for proposals are divided into topics. A topic defines a specific subject or area for which applicants can submit proposals. The description of a topic comprises its specific scope and the expected impact of the funded project.
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Funding scheme (or “Type of Action”) inside a programme with common features. It specifies: the scope of what is funded; the reimbursement rate; specific evaluation criteria to qualify for funding; and the use of simplified forms of costs like lump sums.
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Call for proposal
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(opens in new window) ERC-2024-COG
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1012WX Amsterdam
Netherlands
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