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Vela X-1 is the archetype of high-mass X-ray binaries, composed of a neutron star and a massive B supergiant. The supergiant is a source of a strong radiatively-driven stellar wind. The neutron star sweeps up this wind, and creates a huge…
The stellar wind around the compact object in luminous wind-accreting high mass X-ray binaries is expected to be strongly ionized with the X-rays coming from the compact object. The stellar wind of hot stars is mostly driven by light…
We describe preliminary results of a global model of the radiatively-driven photoionized wind and accretion flow of the high-mass X-ray binary Vela X-1. The full model combines FLASH hydrodynamic calculations, XSTAR photoionization…
Context: Vela X-1 is one of the best studied X-ray binaries. Frequently though, specific values for its parameters have been used in subsequent studies without considering alternatives. Aims: We aim to provide a robust compilation and…
We present results from quantitative modeling and spectral analysis of the high mass X-ray binary Vela X-1 obtained with the Chandra HETGS. The spectra exhibit emission lines from H-like and He-like ions driven by photoionization, as well…
Classical Supergiant X-ray Binaries (SGXBs) and Supergiant Fast X-ray Transients (SFXTs) are two types of High-mass X-ray Binaries (HMXBs) that present similar donors but, at the same time, show very different behavior in the X-rays. The…
Strong stellar winds are an important feature in wind-accreting high-mass X-ray binary (HMXB) systems, providing insights into stellar evolution and their impact on surrounding environments. However, the long-term evolution and temporal…
We provide a brief review of the physical processes behind the radiative driving of the winds of OB stars and the Bondi-Hoyle-Lyttleton capture and accretion of a fraction of the stellar wind by a compact object, typically a neutron star,…
The early acceleration of stellar winds in massive stars is poorly constrained. The scattering of hard X-ray photons emitted by the pulsar in the high-mass X-ray binary Vela X-1 can be used to probe the stellar wind velocity and density…
We present a $\sim$130 ks observation of the prototypical wind-accreting, high-mass X-ray binary Vela X-1 collected with XMM-Newton at orbital phases between 0.12 and 0.28. A strong flare took place during the observation that allows us to…
Vela X-1 is among the best studied and most luminous accreting X-ray pulsars. The supergiant optical companion produces a strong radiatively-driven stellar wind, which is accreted onto the neutron star producing highly variable X-ray…
High-Mass X-ray Binaries (HMXBs) offer a unique opportunity for the investigation of accretion onto compact objects and of wind structure in massive stars. A key source for such studies is the bright neutron star HMXB Vela X-1 whose…
Context. Vela X-1 is among the earliest discovered high-mass X-ray binary (HMXB) pulsars. In such systems, the companion's stellar wind is strongly affected by ionisation from X-rays emitted by the compact object. A smooth, isotropic…
Vela X-1 is an eclipsing high mass X-ray binary (HMXB) consisting of a 283s accreting X-ray pulsar in a close orbit of 8.964 days around the B0.5Ib supergiant HD77581 at a distance of just 2.4 kpc. The system is considered a prototype of…
$Context$: Vela X-1 is the prototype of the classical sgHMXB systems. Recent continuous and long monitoring campaigns revealed a large hard X-rays variability amplitude with strong flares and off-states. This activity has been interpreted…
High-Mass X-ray Binaries (HMXBs) serve as useful laboratories for exploring the behaviour of accreted matter onto compact objects and for probing the complex wind environments of massive stars. These investigations are essential for…
Supergiant High Mass X-ray Binary systems (sgHMXBs) consist of a massive, late type, star and a neutron star. The massive stars exhibits strong, radiatively driven, stellar winds. Wind accretion onto compact object triggers X-ray emission,…
Vela X-1 is the prototype of the class of wind-fed accreting pulsars in high mass X-ray binaries hosting a supergiant donor. We have analyzed in a systematic way ten years of INTEGRAL data of Vela X-1 (22-50 keV) and we found that when…
It has been proposed multiple times to use the neutron star (NS) in high-mass X-ray binaries (HMXBs) as an orbiting X-ray probe embedded in the wind-fed of its supergiant (SG) companion in order to constrain the stellar line-driven wind…
A model for stationary, radiatively driven winds from X--ray bursting neutron stars is presented. General relativistic hydrodynamical and radiative transfer equations are integrated from the neutron star surface outwards, taking into…