  The historic observations of the neutron star merger GW170817 advanced our
understanding of r-process nucleosynthesis and the equation of state (EOS) of
neutron rich matter. Simple neutrino physics suggests that supernovae are not
the site of the main r-process. Instead, the very red color of the kilonova
associated with GW170817 shows that neutron star (NS) mergers are an important
r-process site. We now need to measure the masses and beta decay half-lives of
very neutron rich heavy nuclei so that we can more accurately predict the
abundances of heavy elements that are produced. This can be done with new
radioactive beam accelerators such as the Facility for Rare Isotope Beams
(FRIB). GW170817 provided information on the deformability of NS and the
equation of state of dense matter. The PREX II experiment will measure the
neutron skin of ${}^{208}$Pb and help constrain the low density EOS. As the
sensitivity of gravitational wave detectors improve, we expect to observe many
more events. We look forward to exciting advances and surprises!
