TIME: 3:30 PM

LOCATION: GMCS 314

SPEAKER: Nicole Lloyd-Running, Los Alamos National Laboratory, Computational Physics and Methods

ABSTRACT: The most luminous objects in our universe, gamma-ray bursts, can spectacularly outshine millions of galaxies while they are active. Caused by the collapse of a massive star or the merger of two compact objects, the emission from these objects – brightest in gamma-rays but covering the entire electromagnetic spectrum – is believed to come from dissipation processes in relativistic jets, launched by highly spinning black hole-accretion disk systems left over after the stellar collapse (or the merger event). There are a number of fascinating and surprising mysteries that remain in understanding the physics of these explosions. After sharing my somewhat unusual journey in this field, I will discuss recent results and exciting progress in the multi-scale modeling of these most extreme events in our universe.

BIO: Nicole Lloyd-Ronning is an astrophysicist at Los Alamos National Lab, and teaches physics and astronomy at the University of New Mexico, Los Alamos. She received her B.A. in physics from Cornell University and her Ph.D. in physics from Stanford University. Her research focuses on the physics of gamma-ray bursts – the bright, explosive deaths of very massive stars. She works on the microphysics of the shock development, particle acceleration, and emission mechanisms of relativistic jets, the jet launching process from the black hole central engine, and modeling the progenitor systems that create these spectacular events. She also studies how these systems fit into our broader understanding of star formation and its evolution throughout cosmic time. She grew up all over the U.S. and Germany, and graduated high school in Honolulu, Hawaii. In her free time, she likes to run, swim, cook, eat, listen to music, and hang with her family.

HOST: Sustainable Horizons Institute