Exploring the Transient Universe

This proposal seeks to use transient objects as probes to explore areas of fundamental interest to Astronomy. We seek to understand the physical properties of the Dark Energy that is accelerating the Universe by tracing the Expansion of the Universe with Type Ia Supernovae. We also wish to explore when the first stars in the Universe are born and how they affect the proto-galaxies they reside in using Gamma Ray Bursts to illuminate the gas in around the galaxies in which they reside. Finally, we wish to understand the range of transient objects and the extreme physical situations they present, using new wide-field optical, radio and X-ray observatories to pinpoint these rare, but extreme objects.