Course Details in 2025/26 Session

Module Title	LM Relativistic Astrophysics
School	Physics and Astronomy
Department	Physics & Astronomy
Module Code	03 30682
Module Lead	Professor Alberto Vecchio
Level	Masters Level
Credits	10
Semester	Semester 2
Pre-requisites
Co-requisites
Restrictions	None
Exclusions
Description	White dwarfs, neutron stars, black holes and the early universe represent the most extreme environments in nature, where quantum mechanics meets general relativity.
Learning Outcomes	By the end of the module students should be able to: Have a firm grasp of the evolutionary fate of massive stars, including degenerate stars (white dwarfs and neutron stars) and the Chandrasekhar mass Derive the key properties of accretion onto neutron stars and black holes, including the Eddington limit- Have a firm understanding of pulsar physics Derive the key properties of tidal disruption events Derive the emission of gravitational waves from binary systems and have a firm grasp of the detectability of gravitational-wave signals Have a firm grasp of the tests of general relativity on all scales (e.g., binary pulsars, gravitational waves) Have a firm grounding in the physics of cosmic explosions: supernovae, kilonovae, gamma ray bursts and derive the salient features of their timescales and energetics Have a firm grounding in the concept of cosmic backgrounds
Assessment	30682-01 : Exam : Exam (Centrally Timetabled) - Written Unseen (100%)
Assessment Methods & Exceptions	Assessment: 2 hour Examination (100%)
Other
Reading List