Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) play an important role in the studies of stellar evolution (especially for binary evolution), galaxy evolution and cosmology. At the end of the last century, scientists found that the Universe is expanding in an accelerated rate through the observations of SNe Ia, which implies the existence of dark energy. However, the progenitors of SNe Ia remain unclear, which may affect the accuracy of distance measurement and the reliability of current galaxy chemical evolution models.

In order to solve this problem, the binary population synthesis group of the Yunnan Observatories held the international conference on the progenitors of type Ia supernovae in Lijiang, Yunnan from August 5th to 9th. Nearly 100 experts and scholars at home and abroad attended this conference. Among them, there are nearly 50 experts and scholars from the United States, Japan, Germany, Britain, Israel, Australia and other foreign countries.

The topics of this conference mainly include observations of SNe Ia, supernova remnants and surviving companions, signatures of the CS environment and companion constraints, progenitor models, explosion models, nucleosynthesis and chemical enrichment, binary population synthesis, and progenitor evolution and supernova cosmology. This conference will deepen our understanding of the progenitors of SNe Ia, elucidate the connection between the progenitors and the observed properties of SNe Ia and their remnants, and provide a roadmap of how to ultimately resolve the debate.

The experts and scholars attending this conference totally present 59 academic reports, including the invited reports presented by the internationally renowned experts Professor Kenichi Nomoto, Professor Peter Hoeflich, Professor Rosanne Di Stefano, Professor Paolo Mazzali and other invited speakers. At the end of each day during the meeting, the participants had a two-hour heated discussion on the topic of the day. At the end of the conference, Professor Philipp Podsiadlowski of Oxford University made a concluding speech, which pointed out the key points for the future research on the progenitors of SNe Ia.

This academic event has played a very positive role in promoting the academic atmosphere of Yunnan Observatories, broadening the horizons of researchers at the Yunnan Observatories, and seeking more opportunities for cooperation.

The conference was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China.