Type Ia Supernova: Observations and Theory

There is a wide consensus that Type Ia supernovae are the outcome of the thermonuclear explosion of a carbon–oxygen white dwarfin a binary system. Nevertheless, the nature of this system, the process of ignition itself and the development of the explosion continue to be a mystery despite the important improvements that both, theory and observations, have experienced during the last years. Furthermore, the discovery of new events that are challenging the classical scenario forces the exploration of new issues or, at least, to reconsider scenarios that were rejected at a given moment.