Special Colloquium on the occasion of Michael Wiescher's 75th birthday

Marialuisa Aliotta (University of Edinburgh)

Nuclear Astrophysics Deep Underground: Challenges and Opportunities

Through the study of the nuclear reactions in celestial objects, nuclear astrophysicists seek to understand the origin, evolution, and behaviour of stars, as well as the origin of chemical elements that make up our universe. Some of the major breakthroughs in this fascinating endeavour have come from the most unexpected of places: deep underground. Drawing from early pioneering studies at the Laboratory for Underground Nuclear Astrophysics (LUNA), I will present some key recent highlights that continue to shape up our understanding of the cosmos. On the occasion of Michael Wiescher’s 75th birthday, I will also present open questions close to his heart and discuss future opportunities to foster our collaboration to explore the evolution of first stars, the cosmological lithium problem, and the electron screening puzzle.

and

Hendrik Schatz (Michigan State University)

Radioactive Nuclei in the Cosmos

Radioactive nuclei play a key role as stepping stones for the synthesis of the elements in the cosmos. Their properties and reactions define the chemical composition of the universe and the observable features of stellar explosions, despite of their short time of existence – typically fractions of seconds. Over the past decades radioactive beam facilities have begun to enable the study of some of radioactive nuclei relevant for astrophysics, but many challenges related to the production of sufficiently intense beams and the required sensitivity of experiments remain. On the occasion of Michael Wiescher’s 75th birthday I will provide an overview of his leadership role in this still rapidly growing area of nuclear astrophysics. I will highlight some of the new and old open questions and how they can be addressed, for example using the recently completed FRIB facility in the US, or the future FAIR facility.