Transients in the local Universe: systematically bridging the gap between novae and supernovae

Mansi M. Kasliwal1,2
On behalf of the Palomar Transient Factory Collaboration
1Department of Astronomy, California Institute of Technology, 1200 E. California Blvd. M/C 249-17, Pasadena CA 91125, USA
2Observatories of the Carnegie Institution for Science, 813 Santa Barbara St, Pasadena CA 91101, USA

Abstract. The venerable study of cosmic explosions is over a century old. However, until recently, there has existed a glaring six-magnitude luminosity gap between the brightest novae and faintest supernovae. To find optical transients that are fainter, faster and rarer than supernovae, we designed a systematic search: the ``Palomar Transient Factory''. Theorists predict a variety of mechanisms to produce transients in the gap and observers have the best chance of finding them in the local Universe. Here I present discoveries and unique physics of cosmic explosions that bridge this gap between novae and supernovae.

Keywords: surveys -- novae, cataclysmic variables -- supernovae: general -- transients

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