Related papers: Classical and Recurrent Nova Outbursts
Detection of X-ray emission from classical novae in their post-outburst stages provides crucial information about the nova phenomenon. The soft X-ray emission gives a direct insight into the remaining hot nuclear burning shell. A numerical…
The physical mechanism driving mass ejection during a nova eruption is still poorly understood. Possibilities include ejection in a single ballistic event, a common envelope interaction, a continuous wind, or some combination of these…
Recurrent novae (RNe) are cataclysmic variables with two or more nova eruptions within a century. Classical novae (CNe) are similar systems with only one such eruption. Many of the so-called 'CNe' are actually RNe for which only one…
According to recent theoretical studies, classical novae are expected to erupt every ~$10^5$ years, while the recurrence time scale of modern recurrent novae (N_r) stars ranges from 10 to ~100 years. To bridge this huge gap in our knowledge…
Novae are the observable outcome of a transient thermonuclear runaway on the surface of an accreting white dwarf in a close binary system. Their high peak luminosity renders them visible in galaxies out beyond the distance of the Virgo…
A review of the present status of nova modeling is made, with a special emphasis on some specific aspects. What are the main nucleosynthetic products of the explosion and how do they depend on the white dwarf properties (e.g. mass, chemical…
On 2021 August 8, the recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi erupted again, after an interval of 15.5 yr. Regular monitoring by the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory began promptly, on August 9.9 (0.37 day after the optical peak), and continued until the…
Optical spectra of the 2006 outburst of RS Ophiuchi beginning one day after discovery to over a year after the outburst are presented here. The spectral evolution is found to be similar to that in previous outbursts. The early phase spectra…
I review X-ray observations of classical and recurrent novae in outburst. Significant X-ray flux is emitted by the nova shell, with a peak luminosity up to 10**35 erg/cm**2/s in the 0.2-10 keV range.In recurrent nova systems, or in novae…
Recurrent novae occurring in symbiotic binaries are candidate sources of high energy photons, reaching GeV energies. Such emission is a consequence of particle acceleration leading to pion production. The shock between matter ejected by the…
We present near-IR photo-spectroscopy in the H and K bands of the 2006 outburst of the recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi (RS Oph). The observations cover the period between 1 to 94 days after the eruption. The near IR light curve and an extensive…
The past ten years have seen a tremendous increase in the number of Type Ia supernovae discovered and in the quality of the basic data presented. The cosmological results based on distances to Type Ia events have been spectacular, leading…
Nova Scorpii 2008 was the target of our Directory Discretionary Time proposal at VLT+UVES in order to study the evolution, origin and abundances of the heavy-element absorption system recently discovered in 80% of classical novae in…
A significant fraction of novae exhibit a series of rebrightenings on the decline branch of their light curves. We use visual observations to study this phase in several well-observed novae. We find that these rebrightenings are isolated…
We analyse photometric observations of the supernova (SN) impostor SN 2000ch in NGC 3432 covering the time since its discovery. This source was previously observed to have four outbursts in 2000-2010. Observations now reveal at least three…
The observational properties of recurrent novae indicate that they can be divided into two subclasses:systems with a dwarf and a red giant secondary, respectively. The second type -- which includes RS Oph -- bears many similarities to…
Two classical novae V1493 Aql and V2362 Cyg were known to exhibit unprecedented large-amplitude rebrightening during the late stage of their evolution. We analyzed common properties in these two light curves. We show that these unusual…
The reported positions of 964 suspected nova eruptions in M31 recorded through the end of calendar year 2013 have been compared in order to identify recurrent nova candidates. To pass the initial screen and qualify as a recurrent nova…
U Sco is a recurrent nova with eleven observed eruptions, most recently in 2010.1 and 2022.4. I report on my program (running since 1989) of measuring eclipse times and brightnesses of U Sco in quiescence, from 2010 to 2022. The orbital…
Classical novae are runaway thermonuclear burning events on the surfaces of accreting white dwarfs in close binary star systems, sometimes appearing as new naked-eye sources in the night sky. The standard model of novae predicts that their…