Dept Colloquium: Wen-fai Fong, Northwestern University

Fast Radio Bursts: Observational Status Quo and Puzzles that Challenge It

Speaker: Wen-fai Fong, Northwestern University

Abstract: When we look up at the night sky, we see a static universe. However, observational surveys have revealed that our universe is dynamic with a myriad of transient events. One of the universe's most fascinating and fastest transients to come to light over the past decade are fast radio bursts. While fast radio bursts are seemingly connected to highly-magnetized neutron stars and are among the most prolific transients to occur in nature, the precise ways to create the progenitors of fast radio bursts remain uncertain. In this talk, I will discuss this population of transients and our quest to understand their origins, primarily through observational studies of their local and host galaxy environments. I will describe the status quo in our understanding of their progenitors, and some puzzling findings that have excitingly pushed us to rethink. I will also discuss ongoing upgrades to fast radio burst experiments which have provided the first taste of the oncoming flood of new, well-localized events.

Host: Dr. Cole Miller