Related papers: Thermonuclear X-ray bursts
The light curves of type I X-ray bursts (XRBs) result from energy released from the atmosphere of a neutron star when accreted hydrogen and helium ignite and burn explosively via the rp-process. Since charged particle reaction rates are…
High amplitude, nearly coherent X-ray brightness oscillations during thermonuclear X-ray bursts were discovered with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) in early 1996. Spectral and timing evidence strongly supports the conclusion that…
The last few years have seen the discovery of a number of new aspects of Type I X-ray bursts: the extremely energetic and long duration superbursts, intermediate duration bursts at low luminosities, mHz QPOs, and burst oscillations. These…
We describe observational evidence and theoretical calculations which support the high velocity neutron star model of gamma-ray bursts. We estimate the energetic requirements in this model, and discuss possible energy sources. we also…
Superbursts are rare day-long Type I X-ray bursts due to carbon flashes on accreting neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries. They heat the neutron star envelope such that the burning of accreted hydrogen and helium becomes stable, and the…
The study of transiently accreting neutron stars provides a powerful means to elucidate the properties of neutron star crusts. We present extensive numerical simulations of the evolution of the neutron star in the transient low-mass X-ray…
The coronae in X-ray binaries (XRBs) still remain poorly understood, although they have been believed for a long time to play a key role in modeling the characteristic outbursts of XRBs. Type-I X-ray bursts, the thermonuclear flashes…
Type I X-ray bursts are thermonuclear stellar explosions driven by charged-particle reactions. In the regime for combined H/He-ignition, the main nuclear flow is dominated by the rp-process (rapid proton-captures and beta+ decays), the 3…
We explore the early evolution of flame ignition and spreading on the surface of a neutron star in three-dimensions, in the context of X-ray bursts. We look at the nucleosynthesis and morphology of the burning front and compare to…
Type Ia supernovae are associated with thermonuclear explosions of white dwarf stars. Combustion processes convert material in nuclear reactions and release the energy required to explode the stars. At the same time, they produce the…
We continue to investigate two-dimensional laterally propagating flames in type I X-ray bursts using fully compressible hydrodynamics simulations. In the current study we relax previous approximations where we artificially boosted the…
Superbursts are hours-long X-ray flares attributed to the thermonuclear runaway burning of carbon-rich material in the envelope of accreting neutron stars. By studying the details of the X-ray light curve, properties of carbon combustion…
I summarize some constraints on the physics of neutron stars arising from X-ray observations of the surfaces of neutron stars, focusing on using models of low-magnetic-field neutron star atmospheres to interpret their X-ray spectra. I…
A small subset of thermonuclear X-ray bursts on neutron stars exhibit such a strong photospheric expansion that for a few seconds the photosphere is located at a radius r_ph >~ 1000 km. Such `superexpansions' imply a large and rapid energy…
We investigate the thermonuclear bursting behaviour of IGR J17473-2721, an X-ray transient that in 2008 underwent a six month long outburst, starting (unusually) with an X-ray burst. We detected a total of 57 thermonuclear bursts throughout…
Hotspots on the surface of accreting neutron stars have been directly observed via pulsations in the lightcurves of X-ray pulsars. They are thought to occur due to magnetic channelling of the accreted fuel to the neutron star magnetic…
Astrophysical explosions result from the release of magnetic, gravitational, or thermonuclear energy on dynamical timescales, typically the sound-crossing time for the system. These explosions include solar and stellar flares, eruptive…
Some thermonuclear (type I) X-ray bursts at the neutron star surfaces in low-mass X-ray binaries take place during hard persistent states of the systems. Spectral evolution of these bursts is well described by the atmosphere model of a…
Previously, observations with the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer showed that millisecond oscillations occur preferentially in thermonuclear X-ray bursts with photospheric radius expansion from sources rotating near 600 Hz, while they occur…
We study the spin-down of a neutron star atmosphere during the Type I X-ray burst in low mass X-ray binaries. Using polar cap acceleration models, we show that the resulting stellar ``wind'' torque on the burning shell due to the flowing…