Sparse halos of neutrinos within the hearts of exploding
stars exert a previously unrecognized influence on the physics of the explosion
and may alter which elements can be forged by these violent events.
John Cherry, a graduate student at UC San Diego, models
stellar explosions, including a type called a core-collapse supernova. As these
stars run out of fuel, their cores suddenly collapse to form a neutron star,
which quickly rebounds sending seas of neutrinos through the surrounding
stellar envelope and out into space.