Postdoctoral Fellowship: AAPF: Predicting the spins of stellar cores and remnants: 3D models of the Tayler-Spruit dynamo

Adrian Fraser is awarded an NSF Astronomy and Astrophysics Fellowship to carry out a program of research and education at the University of Colorado Boulder. Fraser will use novel applied mathematical tools to perform simulations of rotating, magnetized fluids in extreme regimes that approximate the interiors of stars. Results from this study will improve our understanding of how rapidly the cores of stars spin over time, with implications for the explosive deaths of massive stars and the black holes and neutron stars they sometimes leave behind.

Fraser will also support a peer mentoring system on campus and extend the mentoring infrastructure to new departments.

The Tayler-Spruit Dynamo (TSD) is a hypothetical form of turbulence thought to occur in magnetized fluids that are rapidly rotating and strongly stratified, which may help explain why the spinning cores of some stars slow as they contract. Unfortunately, demonstrating the existence of the TSD in simulations remains a challenge because rapid rotation and strong stratification strain the capabilities of typical simulations.

To address this, Fraser will leverage recent developments in the geophysical sciences to simulate rapidly rotating fluids, allowing him to explore the efficacy of the TSD in the extreme regimes found in stars. From these simulations, he will construct new models for how the TSD affects the spins of stellar cores, which can then shed light on the spins of the progenitors of transient phenomena and compact remnants.

This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.