Assaf Horesh | Observational Astrophysicist

Racah Institute of Physics The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

Assaf Horesh
assaf.horesh@mail.huji.ac.il

Assaf Horesh

Professor of Astrophysics

Listening to cosmic explosions

I use radio telescopes to investigate the changing Universe.

Portrait of Assaf Horesh

Research

Transients reveal a dynamic Universe

Conceptual visualisation of an expanding supernova remnant Supernovae How stars end their lives Conceptual visualisation of a star being torn apart by a black hole Tidal Disruption Events When a black hole tears a star apart Radio image of a crowded transient field with a marked new source The Transient Radio Sky Finding the unexpected

Selected Publications

Real data. Real questions.

Artist rendering of a supermassive black hole accreting stellar debris beside a radio contour map of the disrupted star's host

Tidal Disruption Events

Radio emission months to years after a tidal disruption event

ASASSN-15oi was radio-silent at first, then flared six months after the star was destroyed — and again, brighter, years later.

Radio telescope dishes under the Milky Way at twilight

Radio Transients

Filling the radio transients gap

Radio facilities dedicated to time-domain follow-up keep uncovering phases no sparse observation would catch — delayed flares, multiple shells, reverse shocks. We are still seeing only the tip of the iceberg.

Astronomy & Geophysics (2023)

Left: illustration of a stellar explosion. Right: radio images of the same field before and after the transient appeared, and the host galaxy with the transient's position marked

New Types of Explosions

A merger-triggered core-collapse supernova

An all-sky radio survey turned up a luminous source: a supernova whose ejecta are crashing into a dense shell, with an archival X-ray flare marking a relativistic jet. Together they point to a core collapse triggered by a merging compact companion.

Explore the complete publication record.

People, Ideas & Open Questions

Research is collaborative. Meet the students and colleagues exploring the transient Universe with us.

Pointing out a radio point source on a monitor showing a radio image, broadband spectrum and light curve, with two students looking on

Contact

Center for Astrophysics and Planetary Science
Racah Institute of Physics
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem
Edmond J. Safra Campus, Jerusalem assaf.horesh@mail.huji.ac.il

Same Universe.
Different waves.
More to discover.