Related papers: Evidence for the White Dwarf Nature of Mira B
We report photometric observations in Johnson B and V bands of the short term variability (flickering) of Mira (omicron Ceti). The observations were performed during 7 nights in the period August - October 2025, in the course of the last…
The Mira AB system is a nearby (~107 pc) example of a wind accreting binary star system. In this class of system, the wind from a mass-losing red giant star (Mira A) is accreted onto a companion (Mira B), as indicated by an accretion shock…
We present the results of XMM-Newton X-ray observations of the Mira AB binary system, which consists of a pulsating, asymptotic giant branch primary and nearby (~0.6'' separation) secondary of uncertain nature. The EPIC CCD (MOS and pn)…
White dwarfs (WDs) are the final fate of about 97\% of the stars in our galaxy, making them vital tracers of stellar history. A fraction of WDs exist in cataclysmic variable (CV) systems, accreting matter from a nearby companion star. A…
The atmospheres of a large proportion of white dwarf stars are polluted by heavy elements that are expected to sink out of visible layers on short timescales. This has been interpreted as a signature of ongoing accretion of debris from…
We present a first analysis of the g-mode oscillation spectrum for the white dwarf (WD) primary of GW Lib, a faint cataclysmic variable (CV). Stable periodicities have been observed from this WD for a number of years, but their…
Accreting white dwarfs are often found in close binary systems with orbital periods ranging from tens of minutes to several hours. In most cases, the accretion process is relatively steady, with significant modulations only occurring on…
White dwarfs are often found in binary systems with orbital periods ranging from tens of minutes to hours in which they can accrete gas from their companion stars. In about 15% of these binaries, the magnetic field of the white dwarf is…
Binary companions to asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars are an important aspect of their evolution. Few AGB companions have been detected, and in most cases it is difficult to distinguish between main-sequence and white dwarf companions.…
We present numerical hydrodynamical modeling of the effects of a giant planet or brown dwarf companion orbiting within the extended atmosphere and wind formation zone of an approximately solar-mass Mira variable star. The large-scale,…
Accreting white dwarfs (WDs) with non-degenerate companions are expected to emit in soft X-rays and the UV, if accreted H-rich material burns stably. They are an important component of the unresolved emission of elliptical galaxies, and…
We report optical CCD photometry of the recently identified symbiotic star EF Aql. Our observations in Johnson V and B bands clearly show the presence of stochastic light variations with an amplitude of about 0.2 mag on a time scale of…
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…
We calculate the heating and cooling of the accreting white dwarf (WD) in the ultracompact AM Canum Venaticorum (AM CVn) binaries and show that the WD can contribute significantly to their optical and ultraviolet emission. We estimate the…
Novae are cataclysmic variable binary systems in which a white dwarf primary is accreting material from a low mass companion. The importance of this accretion takes on added significance if the WD can increase its mass to reach the…
Compared to mass transfer in cataclysmic variables, the nature of accretion in symbiotic binaries in which red giants transfer material to white dwarfs (WDs) has been difficult to uncover. The accretion flows in a symbiotic binary are most…
Any white dwarf or neutron star that accretes enough material from a red giant companion, such that this interaction can be detected at some wavelength, is currently termed Symbiotic Star (typical P(orb)=2-3 years). In the majority of ~400…
Our long-term photometric monitoring of southern nova-like cataclysmic variables with the 1.3-m SMARTS telescope found BB Doradus fading from V ~ 14.3 towards a deep low state at V ~ 19.3 in April 2008. Here we present time-resolved optical…
Dwarf novae are a subset of cataclysmic variables that accrete material intermittently in short-duration outbursts with sometimes long quiescent intervals in between. During the quiescent state, the white dwarf (WD) photosphere may be…
Our previous theoretical study of the impact of an accreting envelope on the thermal state of an underlying white dwarf (WD) has yielded equilibrium core temperatures, classical nova ignition masses and thermal luminosities for WDs…