Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars are believed to represent the progenitors of a
subset of Type Ib/c supernovae, although a direct observational link
is yet to be established. Our group are conducting ground- (VLT,
Gemini) and space-based (HST) imaging and spectroscopic surveys of
nearby (<8Mpc) star forming spiral galaxies to identify WR progenitors
of future core-collapse supernova. We discuss our technique and sample
size, from which we consider the likely prospects for detection.
View poster as pdf.