Publisher's Synopsis
Dramatic advances in ground-based and space astronomy, together with observations of the serendipitous supernova 1987A, have led to the study of supernovae and supernova remnants becoming one of the most active and rewarding fields in today's astrophysics. To take stock of these exciting developments and to give focus to future research, the International Astronomical Union held a colloquium in Xian, China, for the world's leading experts and this volume gathers together their articles. The articles summarise our knowledge of supernova 1987A and give the first results on supernova 1993J. They not only demonstrate the latest techniques for interpreting spectra and light curves of supernovae, but show how they can be applied to measuring the cosmic distance scale. They also cover recent advances in theories for type I and type II supernovae, and observations and interpretations of supernova remnants. Two appendices provide a unique reference of newly discovered supernovae and supernova remnants. Together these forty review articles provide an up-to-date and wide-ranging review of our understanding of supernovae and supernova remnants for graduate students and researchers.
