Related papers: RS Ophiuchi in Quiescence: Why is it X-ray Faint?
We present results of an X-ray search from bona-fide and candidate brown dwarfs in the Rho Ophiuchi cloud cores with the Chandra X-ray Observatory. The selected areas are two fields near the cloud center and are observed with the ACIS-I…
DQ Herculis (Nova Herculis 1934) is a deeply eclipsing cataclysmic variable containing a magnetic white dwarf primary. The accretion disk is thought to block our line of sight to the white dwarf at all orbital phases due to its extreme…
We reanalyse archival GINGA and ASCA X-ray data from SS Cyg in both quiescence and outburst, using multi-temperature plasma models for the continuum and line emission, together with their reflection from the X-ray illuminated white dwarf…
Most transient black hole X-ray binaries (BHXBs) spend the bulk of their time in a quiescent state, where they accrete matter from their companion star at highly sub-Eddington luminosities (we define quiescence here as a normalized…
We report the onset of a large amplitude, statistically significant periodicity (~46 d) in the RXTE/ASM data of the prototype X-ray burster 4U 1636-53, the X-ray flux of which has been gradually declining over the last four years. This…
Nova outbursts take place in binary star systems comprising a white dwarf and either a low-mass Sun-like star or, as in the case of the recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi, a red giant. Although the cause of these outbursts is known to be…
We present results from ASCA observations of the binary CI Cam both in quiescence and in outburst in order to identify its central accreting object. The quiescence spectrum of CI Cam consists of soft and hard components which are separated…
We present a phase-resolved ROSAT HRI X-ray light curve of the dwarf nova OY Car in quiescence. The X-ray flux is eclipsed at the same time as the optical eclipse of the primary, and the region of X -ray emission is comparable in size to…
Very faint X-ray binaries (VFXBs), defined as having peak luminosities Lx of 10^34-10^36 erg/s, have been uncovered in significant numbers, but remain poorly understood. We analyse three published outburst light curves of two transient…
Interacting binaries in which a white dwarf accretes material from a companion - cataclysmic variables (CVs) in which the mass donor is a Roche-lobe filling star on or near the main sequence, and symbiotic stars in which the mass donor is a…
The Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) has found that the neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries exhibit oscillations in the range 300-1200 Hz. Persistent emission may exhibit one or both of two features. In bursts a nearly coherent…
We present the final results of a ROSAT PSPC program to study the soft X-ray emission properties of a complete sample of low $z$ quasars. The main results are: 1. There is no evidence for significant soft excess emission or excess…
A rapid timing analysis of VLT/ULTRACAM and RXTE observations of the black hole binary GX 339-4 in its 2007 low/hard state is presented. The optical light curves in the r', g' and u' filters show slow (~20 s) quasi-periodic variability.…
We investigate the relation between the optical (g-band) and X-ray (0.5-10 keV) luminosities of accreting nonmagnetic white dwarfs. According to the present-day counts of the populations of star systems in our Galaxy, these systems have the…
The brightest ultraluminous X-ray source currently known, HLX-1, has been observed to undergo five outburst cycles. The periodicity of these outbursts, and their high inferred maximum accretion rates of $\sim{\rm few}\times 10^{-4} M_\odot…
To help constrain the origin of the peculiar X-ray emission of gamma Cas stars, we conducted a simultaneous optical and X-ray monitoring of pi Aqr in 2018. At that time, the star appeared optically bright and active, with a very strong…
Young O stars are strong, hard, and variable X-ray sources, properties which strongly affect their circumstellar and galactic environments. After ~1 Myr, these stars settle down to become steady sources of soft X-rays. I use high-resolution…
I review various phenomena associated with mass-accreting white dwarfs (WDs) in the view of supersoft X-ray sources. When the mass-accretion rate is low (\dot M_{acc} < a few \times 10^{-7} M_\sun yr^{-1}), hydrogen nuclear burning is…
The detection of X-ray emission from Ap stars can be an indicator for the presence of magnetic activity and dynamo action, provided different origins for the emission, such as wind shocks and close late-type companions, can be excluded.…
We analyse very deep X-ray and mid-IR surveys in common areas of the Lockman Hole and the HDF North to study the sources of the X-ray background (XRB) and to test the standard obscured accretion paradigm. We detect with ISO a rich…