Assess the event-level capability of neutron star mergers to enrich star-forming gas

Determine the fraction of neutron star mergers that occur sufficiently early and in environments conducive to enriching star-forming gas before the next star-forming episode within their host galaxies.

Background

Due to long delay times and natal kicks, neutron star mergers can occur in environments with little ongoing star formation or at large galactocentric offsets, which may prevent r-process ejecta from enriching new stars. Establishing the fraction of mergers that actually enrich star-forming gas is crucial for linking observed events to stellar r-process abundances.

References

It therefore remains unclear what fraction of NS mergers are capable of enriching star-forming gas before the next possible star-forming period within their hosts.

— Where has all the $r$-process gone? Timescales for GRB-Kilonovae to Enrich their Host Galaxies (2410.00095 - Nugent et al., 30 Sep 2024) in Section 1. INTRODUCTION