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Month: October 2017

The artist's rendering (left) of GRB 050709 depicts a gamma-ray burst that was discovered on 9 July, 2005 by NASA's High-Energy Transient Explorer. The burst radiated an enormous amount of energy in gamma-rays for half a second, then faded away. Three days later, Chandra's detection of the X-ray afterglow (inset) established its position with high accuracy. A Hubble Space Telescope image showed that the burst occurred in the outskirts of a spiral galaxy. This location is outside the star-forming regions of the galaxy and evidence that the burst was not produced by the explosion of an extremely massive star. The most likely explanation for the burst is that it was produced by a collision of two neutron stars, or a neutron star and a black hole.

Solving Cosmic Puzzles

Neutron stars are dead stars collapsed into the densest form of matter known to humans, with a teaspoon of neutron star matter weighing a billion tons, and their collision creates a swath of galactic debris. Decades ago, stargazing scientists formed plans to detect signals from this debris. Now, in the new era of aptly named “multi-messenger astronomy,” two international projects have achieved this goal: On August 17 of this year, the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO)’s two U.S.-based interferometers and the Virgo Collaboration’s Italy-based interferometer detected for the first time gravitational waves — ripples in space-time traveling at the speed of light — from the collision and subsequent merger of two neutron stars. The detection occurred just three days after yet another “chirp” from colliding black holes.

image of collegiate building on cloudy day

PROGRAM SPOTLIGHT: SPS Graduate Program

A particularly rewarding role for graduate faculty members is the opportunity to foster the academic and professional growth of our MA and PhD candidates as they transition from being our students to becoming our eventual colleagues. That is, in short, the goal of our graduate program — to form professionals in the fields of Hispanic […]

vibrant cityscape of tall Spanish buildings and lights

FACULTY SPOTLIGHT: Crystal Marull, PhD

A summer trip to Spain with her high school’s Language Club “changed everything” for Crystal Marull: her desire to be able to return to Spain eventually led her to select Boston University for college. Crystal participated in their study abroad program in Madrid twice as an undergraduate, and she was invited after graduation to serve […]

glowing cityscape of multi-colored buildings along river

STUDENT SPOTLIGHT: Francesc Morales

Francesc’s dissertation project offers an original blend of historical and literary analysis —within the broader framework of cultural studies — with the purpose of exploring the role played by fictional representations of archaeologists and archaeological work in the development of modern Spanish national identity. Spanish nationalism(s), either in singular or plural, is presently a highly debated […]

majestic old Spanish palace at sunset

ALUMNI SPOTLIGHT: Diego Pascual, PhD

Diego Pascual PhD’13 was born in Madrid, Spain, and grew up in Granada. Diego recalls his first reflections about language as “a really cool thing” to observe and to study came while visiting family in Valencia: “It amazed me to see my relatives switch back and forth effortlessly between [Spanish and Catalan]. It amazed me […]