Supernova models

Recent progress in understanding the observed properties of type I supernovae as a consequence of the thermonuclear detonation of white dwarf stars and the ensuing decay of the Ni-56 produced therein is reviewed. The expected nucleosynthesis and gamma-line spectra for this model of type I explosions and a model for type II explosions are presented. Finally, a qualitatively new approach to the problem of massive star death and type II supernovae based upon a combination of rotation and thermonuclear burning is discussed. While the theoretical results of existing models are predicated upon the assumption of a successful core bounce calculation and the neglect of such two-dimensional effects as rotation and magnetic fields the new model suggests an entirely different scenario in which a considerable portion of the energy carried by an equatorially ejected blob is deposited in the red giant envelope overlying the mantle of the star