Related papers: The Nova Shell and Evolution of the Recurrent Nova…
Estimates of the accretion rate in symbiotic recurrent novae (RNe) often fall short of theoretical expectations by orders of magnitude. This apparent discrepancy can be resolved if the accumulation of mass by the white dwarf (WD) is highly…
The recurrent nova T Pyx was observed with the X-ray gratings of Chandra and XMM-Newton, 210 and 235 days, respectively, after the discovery of the 2011 April 14 outburst. The X-ray spectra show prominent emission lines of C, N, and O, with…
I present a total of 98.8 ksec ($\sim$ 3$\times$30 ksec) observation of T Pyx with the ACIS-S3 detector on-board the $Chandra$ Observatory obtained during the quiescent phase, about 2-3 months before its outburst in April 2011. The total…
We report the optical, UV, and soft X-ray observations of the $2017-2022$ eruptions of the recurrent nova M31N 2008-12a. We infer a steady decrease in the accretion rate over the years based on the inter-eruption recurrence period. We find…
I resolved and detected an X-ray nebulosity around the recurrent nova T Pyx using a 98.8 ksec observation with the ACIS-S detector on-board the Chandra Observatory during the quiescent phase of the nova before its outburst in 2011. The…
T Pyx is a luminous recurrent nova that accretes at a much higher rate than is expected for its photometrically determined orbital period of about 1.8 hours. We here provide the first spectroscopic confirmation of the orbital period, P…
KT Eridani was a very fast nova in 2009 peaking at V=5.42 mag. We marshal large data sets of photometry to finally work out the nature of KT Eri. From the TESS light curve, as confirmed with our radial velocity curve, we find an orbital…
RS Ophiuchi is a recurrent nova system that experiences outbursts every ~20 years, implying accretion at a high rate onto a massive white dwarf. However, previous X-ray observations of the system in quiescence have detected only faint…
We present the first observational evidence for a collimated jet in a cataclysmic variable system; the recurrent nova T Pyxidis. Optical spectra show bipolar components of H$\alpha$ with velocities $\sim 1400 km/s$, very similar to those…
We study the spectroscopic and ionized structural evolution of T Pyx during its 2011 outburst, and also study the variation in degree of polarization during its early phase. Optical spectroscopic data of this system obtained from day…
Classical nova eruptions result from thermonuclear-powered runaways in, and ejection of, the hydrogen-rich envelopes of white dwarf stars accreted from their close binary companions. Novae brighten to up to 1,000,000 solar luminosities, and…
A nova super-remnant (NSR) is an immense structure associated with a nova that forms when frequent and recurrent nova eruptions sweep up surrounding interstellar material (ISM) into a high density and distant shell. The prototypical NSR,…
T Coronae Borealis (T CrB) is one of the eleven known recurrent novae in our Galaxy. It was observed in outburst in 1866 and 1946, with additional likely eruptions recorded in 1217 and 1787. Given its predicted recurrence period of…
We investigated the optical light curve of T Pyx during its 2011 outburst through compiling a database of SMEI and AAVSO observations. The SMEI light curve, providing unprecedented detail with high cadence data during t=1.5-49 days…
We present spatially-resolved, moderate-resolution spectrophotometry of the recurrent nova T Pyx and a portion of the surrounding shell. The spectrum extracted from a strip of width 10'' centered on the star shows well-known, strong…
We investigated the optical lightcurve of T Pyx during its 2011 outburst by compiling a database of SMEI and AAVSO observations. The SMEI lightcurve, providing unprecedented detail covering 1.5-49d post-discovery, was divided into four…
We show that the extremely high luminosity of the short-period recurrent nova T Pyx in quiescence can be understood if this system is a wind-driven supersoft x-ray source (SSS). In this scenario, a strong, radiation-induced wind is excited…
T Corona Borealis (T CrB) is a symbiotic recurrent nova with an $\simeq 80$ yr recurrence interval, the eruptions of which occur on top of a $\simeq 15$ yr long high-brightness state. We show that the high-brightness state is best explained…
The nova super-remnant (NSR) surrounding M31N 2008-12a (12a), the annually erupting recurrent nova (RN), is the only known example of this phenomenon. As this structure has grown as a result of frequent eruptions from 12a, we might expect…
The iPTF detection of the most recent outburst of the recurrent nova system RX J0045.4+4154 in the Andromeda Galaxy has enabled the unprecedented study of a massive ($M>1.3\ M_\odot$) accreting white dwarf (WD). We detected this nova as…