How would a nearby kilonova look on camera?

Abstract

Kilonovae are cosmic optical flashes produced in the aftermath of the merger of two neutron stars. While the typical radiant flux of a kilonova can be as high as 1034 W, they typically occur at cosmological distances, requiring meter-class or larger telescopes for their observation. Here, we explore how a kilonova would look like from the Earth if it occurred in the Solar System's backyard, 1000 light years from the Earth. This is a small distance on cosmological scales, with only one neutron-star merger expected to occur this close every 100 000 000 years. While humans will likely only see kilonovae at much greater distances, showing how such a nearby event would look on camera can help visualize these events and demonstrate their unique spectral evolution.