Related papers: M31N 2008-12a - The Remarkable Recurrent Nova in M…
Despite intense scrutiny, the progenitor system(s) that gives rise to Type Ia supernovae remains unknown. The favored theory invokes a carbon-oxygen white dwarf accreting hydrogen-rich material from a close companion until a thermonuclear…
The recurrent nova RS Oph undergoes nova eruptions every ~ 10-20years as a result of thermonuclear runaway on the surface of a white dwarf close to the Chandrasekhar limit. Both the progress of the eruption, and its aftermath, depend on the…
The observed properties of novae before and after eruption are discussed. The distribution of orbital periods of novae shows a concentration near 3.2 h, which resembles that of magnetic cataclysmic variables, and there is some evidence that…
Nova explosions occur on accreting white dwarfs. A thermonuclear runaway in the H-rich accreted envelope causes its ejection without destroying the white dwarf, and an increase in the luminosity by several magnitudes. Accretion is…
We present a detailed study of the 2016 eruption of nova V407 Lupi (ASASSN-16kt), including optical, near-infrared, X-ray, and ultraviolet data from SALT, SMARTS, SOAR, Chandra, Swift, and XMM-Newton. Timing analysis of the multiwavelength…
We present the results of a systematic numerical study of an alternative progenitor scenario to produce type Ia supernova explosions, which is not restricted to the ignition of a CO white dwarf near the Chandrasekhar mass. In this scenario,…
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…
Supernova Ia are bright explosive events that can be used to estimate cosmological distances, allowing us to study the expansion of the Universe. They are understood to result from a thermonuclear detonation in a white dwarf that formed…
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…
We report the discovery of a new dwarf nova and our observations of its first confirmed superoutburst during 2009 October. The outburst amplitude was 6 magnitudes. The main outburst lasted 17 days and was followed 4 days later by a…
When a massive star reaches the end of its lifetime, its core collapses and releases neutrinos that drive a shock into the outer layers (stellar envelope). A sufficiently strong shock ejects the envelope, producing a supernova. If the shock…
Quasi-periodic eruptions (QPEs) are rapid, recurring X-ray bursts from supermassive black holes, believed to result from interactions between accretion disks and surrounding matter. The galaxy SDSS1335+0728, previously stable for two…
We present results from a 47 ks observation of the Andromeda galaxy, M31, using the High-Resolution Camera of the Chandra X-Ray Observatory. We detect 142 point sources spanning three orders of magnitude in luminosity, from $L_X = 2\times…
Type Ia supernovae arise from thermonuclear explosions of white dwarfs accreting from a binary companion. Following the explosion, the surviving donor star leaves at roughly its orbital velocity. The discovery of the runaway helium subdwarf…
Recent interpretations of narrow, variable absorption lines detected in some Type Ia supernovae suggest that their progenitors are surrounded by dense, circumstellar material. Similar variations detected in the symbiotic recurrent nova…
We explore collisions between two white dwarfs as a pathway for making Type Ia Supernovae (SNIa). White dwarf number densities in globular clusters allow 10-100 redshift <1 collisions per year, and observations by (Chomiuk et al. 2008) of…
The experimental determination of the cross-section of the ^{12}C+^{12}C reaction has never been made at astrophysically relevant energies (E<2 MeV). The profusion of resonances throughout the measured energy range has led to speculation…
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…
Neutrino astronomy provides another window to exploring the Universe, exemplified by the detection of a megaelectronvolt neutrino burst from the core-collapse supernova (CCSN) SN~1987A (refs.~\citenum{hir+87,bio+87}). Commonly discussed…
Type Ia supernovae are exploding stars that are used to measure the accelerated expansion of the Universe and are responsible for most of the iron ever produced. Although there is general agreement that the exploding star is a white dwarf…