Written
in the Stars
I heard about supernovae and the origin of elements, and the idea of exploding stars was so beyond my imagination that I was immediately fascinated.
Tell us briefly about your research.
I'm working on astronomy, a subject to understand what's going on in our Universe. In particular, I'm interested in the explosion of stars. Stars are shining all over the sky and some of them explode at the end of their life. That is an exciting phenomenon, but a more practical reason to do research on exploding stars is to understand the origin of the elements around us.
In our daily life we are surrounded by various elements. For example, even now, we are absorbing nitrogen and oxygen. This building is made with a lot of iron. These elements, which did not exist at the beginning of the Universe, are produced inside of stars. And when the stars explode, these elements are ejected into space, and this is the reason why we now have a variety of elements around us.
Were you always interested in space and the Universe as a child?
Not at all! When I was young, I was really into rock music and playing my guitar. I played baseball and other sports too. I didn't have a telescope, and I didn't grow up thinking that I would devote my life to science. But because I lived in the countryside near Nagoya, I spent a lot of time outdoors, and I guess the brilliant stars were always a part of my life.
How did you decide on astronomy?
When I entered university as an undergraduate student, I was planning to work on space engineering. But by taking many classes, I realized I was more interested in the deep mysteries of the Universe, so I chose astronomy instead of engineering. Then I heard about supernovae and the origin of elements, and the idea of exploding stars was so beyond my imagination that I was immediately fascinated.
What is something about the Universe that would surprise regular people?
We know that high-priced metals such as gold and platinum can be found in the Earth. But how did they get there? That's the mystery I'm trying to solve - where or which phenomena in the Universe created such elements. There is a theory that gold was formed through a collision of so called “neutron stars,” and the explosion ejected a huge amount of elements which, over time, settled onto Earth. The exact origin is what I am most interested in.
Image courtesy of Tohoku University and Studio Xxingham
Image courtesy of Tohoku University and Studio Xxingham
How often do stars explode?
A galaxy is a collection of many, many stars. And inside one galaxy, about one star explodes every 100 years. By using a modern telescope, we can observe many galaxies. In the Universe there are lots of galaxies, so by monitoring we can actually observe many exploding stars. Nowadays, about 3,000 exploding stars are discovered every year.
Can regular people with a good telescope see a star explode from their home?
Yes, many amateur astronomers are actually contributing to the discovery of supernovae, which is what we call exploding stars. “Nova” means new star, so a supernova looks like a new star that's just appeared in the sky. So, what we do is we monitor the sky through a telescope, take many images and look for something that did not exist the previous day or the previous week. In principle, this can even be done without a telescope. However, having a star so bright that it is visible to the naked eye is very rare.
Now that they are part of your work, do stars still fascinate you?
Yes, of course. The stars are not just work; they are part of my life. They are always there and making me think.
So how do you relax?
I try to forget about work, but to be honest, it is quite difficult. Every weekend I go to the gym, and I run. I try to refresh my mind by training my body. Sometimes it works but it is true that I am thinking about my research almost all the time.
You are from Nagoya, how did you end up in Sendai?
I first went to Tokyo and got my Ph.D. from the University of Tokyo. Then I started working at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, the country’s central institute of astronomy. When Tohoku University offered me a job in 2018, I was so excited because it gave me a chance to work with students. At the national institute, I was basically surrounded by researchers, and I was just doing my own research. But now I work a lot with students, which I really enjoy.
Is Tohoku University a good place to study astronomy?
Absolutely! We have a really strong group of faculty members doing good research. I work on exploding stars but there are people who work on planet formation, galaxy evolution, and so on. So, the scale is very different, and accordingly the research methodology is also different. There is large diversity in the research expertise of every faculty member. And that is why I find it so exciting to be here - just a random conversation with other members can lead to new ideas.
Photograph: Astronomical image taken with a wide-field camera mounted on the Subaru Telescope. The data was acquired to search for stellar explosions in the distant Universe.
Masaomi Tanaka is an astronomer at Tohoku University's Astronomical Institute who studies cosmic explosions like supernovae and neutron star mergers. Combining telescope observations with computer simulations, he investigates the physics of these phenomena. His decade-long focus on neutron star mergers has connected astronomical observations with atomic properties of heavy elements. In 2017, he played a key role interpreting the first observed neutron star merger, providing evidence that these events create precious metals like gold and platinum.
Tanaka received Japan's Commendation for Science and Technology in 2019 for his research on heavy element origins. He actively engages in public outreach and has authored books on supernovae (2015) and multi-messenger astronomy (2021).
Romance
of
雷速体育_中国足彩网￥在线直播