At the end of a star’s life, the stellar core transitions into becoming degenerate matter through a series of complicated physics. This nuclear degeneracy causes this material to become some of the most dense, exotic, and complex matter in the known universe. Once the star dies, it will leave behind what are known as compact objects. In order of density and complexity, these are: white dwarfs, neutron stars, and black holes. Roughly about 60% of stars exist in binary pairs, therefore it is likely that they may end both becoming a compact object, depending on their initial mass. The field of binary compact object mergers is the study of such systems, including looking at population, dynamics, detonations, and various gravitational phenomena. It is this relatively new field which has opened up what we now refer to as multi-messenger astronomy. This talk will cover the various systems that I have studied throughout my academic career thus far, focusing on detonation physics, population synthesis, and gravitational phenomena.
