Extremely high speed shock waves emerging from a star

What is it about?

When a star explodes, a shock wave generated inside the star propagates outward and reaches the surface. We found a solution to describe this phenomenon. We found another solution covering the evolution of the wave after the shock passes the surface.

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Why is it important?

This phenomenon is the first electromagnetic signature of the explosion of a star though it is extremely difficult to detect it due to its extremely short duration. Nevertheless, this signature has precious information on the star including its size. Some massive stars are thought to undergo jet-like explosions. Gamma-ray burst is thought to be emission from the relativistic jet emanating from such a massive star when it explodes. To investigate the early phase of the jet, it is important to describe the shock wave approaching the surface of a star.