R-process-enhanced metal-poor stars in the Milky Way Galaxy, and nearby satellites, hold the keys to understanding heavy element production across cosmic time. While the site(s) of the r-process are still debated, detailed and precise r-process element abundances in metal-poor stars can help provide answers on the origins, as well as dominant site(s) in a level of detail not accessible by any other method. In this talk, I will describe recent efforts to answer outstanding questions about the origins of the heaviest elements, using the dataset of UV and optical observations of metal-poor stars, to draw connections to the yields of enrichment events that took place in the early universe. I will also highlight the effects of simplified physical input spectroscopic models using Local Thermodynamic Equilibrium (LTE) on the precision and accuracy of our derived abundances, as well as our conclusions about the evolution of the elements.
Speaker: Rana Ezzeddine, University of Florida
Host: Allison Strom
CIERA Astrophysics
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