Related papers: Enhanced optical activity 12 days before X-ray act…
We report on a long-term optical monitoring of the neutron star X-ray binary Centaurus X-4 performed during the last 13.5 years. This source has been in quiescence since its outburst in 1979. Our monitoring reveals the overall evolution of…
The optical behaviour of the Be star in the high mass X-ray transient A0535+26/HDE245770 shows that at the periastron typically there is an enhancement in the luminosity of order 0.02 to few tenths mag, and the X-ray outburst happens about…
Many neutron star low-mass X-ray binaries (NS LMXBs) with short orbital periods (~hours) cycle between outburst and quiescent phases, and thus provide an excellent way to study the accretion process. The cause of such outbursts is believed…
We report the analysis of the first superburst from a transiently accreting neutron star system with the All-Sky Monitor (ASM) on the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer. The superburst occurred 55 days after the onset of an accretion outburst in…
Be/X-ray binary systems exhibit both periodic (Type I) X-ray outbursts and giant (Type II) outbursts, whose origin has remained elusive. We suggest that Type II X-ray outbursts occur when a highly misaligned decretion disk around the Be…
AX J0049.4-7323 is a Be/X-ray binary that shows an unusual and poorly understood optical variability that consists of periodic and bright optical outbursts, simultaneous with X-ray outbursts, characterised by a highly asymmetric profile.…
Disc instability models predict that for X-ray binaries in quiescence, there should be a brightening of the optical flux prior to an X-ray outburst. Tracking the X-ray variations of X-ray binaries in quiescence is generally not possible, so…
Accreting neutron stars and black holes in low-mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) radiate across the electromagnetic spectrum. Linking the emission produced at different wavelengths can provide valuable information about the accretion process and…
Many X-ray binaries are transiently accreting. Having statistics on their recurrence times is helpful to address questions related to binary evolution and populations, as well as the physics of binary systems. We compile a catalog of known…
In this paper we report on the spectral analysis of seven X-ray transients, which were found to be active during a monitoring campaign of the Galactic center carried out in 2006 and 2007 using the X-ray telescope aboard the Swift satellite.…
We report on a thermonuclear (type-I) X-ray burst that was detected from the neutron star low-mass X-ray binary SAX J1810.8-2609 in 2007 with Swift. This event was longer (~20 min) and more energetic (a radiated energy of Eb~6.5E39 erg)…
For thermonuclear flashes to occur on neutron-star surfaces, fuel must have been accreted from a donor star. However, sometimes flashes are seen from transient binary systems when they are thought to be in their quiescent phase, during…
Millisecond spinning, low magnetic field neutron stars are believed to attain their fast rotation in a 0.1-1 Gyr-long phase during which they accrete matter endowed with angular momentum from a low-mass companion star. Despite extensive…
We have performed a statistical study of the properties of 110 bright X-ray outbursts in 36 low-mass X-ray binary transients (LMXBTs) seen with the All-Sky Monitor (2--12 keV) on board the {\it Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer} ({\it RXTE}) in…
Low-mass X-ray binaries with a neutron star as the primary object show a complex array of phenomenology during outbursts. The observed variability in X-ray emission primarily arises from changes in the innermost regions of the accretion…
We present optical spectroscopy and optical and infrared photometry of the neutron star soft X-ray transient Aql X--1 during its X-ray outburst of August 1997. By modelling the X-ray, optical, and IR light curves, we find a 3 day delay…
X-ray observations of neutron star (NS) low mass X-ray binaries (LMXBs) are useful to probe physical processes close to the NS and to constrain source parameters. Aql X-1 is a transient NS LMXB which frequently undergoes outbursts provides…
The optical behaviour of the Be star in the high-mass X-ray transient A0535+26/HDE245770 shows that at periastron the luminosity is typically enhanced by 0.02 to a few tenths magnitude, and the X-ray outburst occurs eight days after the…
Following long periods of quiescence, low-mass X-ray binaries can exhibit intense X-ray outbursts triggered by instabilities within the accretion disk. These outbursts can sometimes be detected in optical wavelengths before being detected…
The All Sky Monitor on the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer detected an X-ray (2-12 keV) outburst from the black hole binary GRO J1655-40 beginning near April 25, 1996. Optical photometry obtained April 20-24, 1996 shows a steady brightening of…