The Core-Collapse Supernova Explosion Mechanism

Abstract

The explosion mechanism of core-collapse supernovae is a long-standing problem in stellar astrophysics. We briefly outline the main contenders for a solution and review recent efforts to model core-collapse supernova explosions by means of multi-dimensional simulations. We discuss several suggestions for solving the problem of missing or delayed neutrino-driven explosions in three-dimensional supernova models, including -- among others -- variations in the microphysics and large seed perturbations in convective burning shells. Focusing on the neutrino-driven mechanism, we summarise currents efforts to predict supernova explosion and remnant properties based on first-principle models and on more phenomenological approaches.

Comments: Invited review to appear in the International Astronomical Union Proceedings Serie (IAU Symposium 329, "The Lives and Death Throes of Massive Stars"). 8 pages, 2 figures