Related papers: X-Ray Flashes on Helium Novae
We present HST/ACS ultraviolet photometry of three quiescent black hole X-ray transients: X-ray Nova Muscae 1991 (GU Mus), GRO J0422+32 (V518 Per), and X-ray Nova Vel 1993 (MM Vel), and one neutron star system, Aql X-1. These are the first…
All evolved stars with masses $M_\star\lesssim 2M_\odot$ undergo a helium(He)-core flash at the end of their first stage as a giant star. Although theoretically predicted more than 50 years ago, this core-flash phase has yet to be…
We have analyzed {\it Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer} (RXTE) data of the neutron star transient Aquila X-1 obtained during its outbursts in May/June 1999 and September/October 2000. We find that in the early rise of these outbursts, a hard…
V3890 Sgr is a recurrent nova which has been seen in outburst three times so far, with the most recent eruption occurring on 2019 August 27 UT. This latest outburst was followed in detail by the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, from less…
Currently, it may take days for a bright nova outburst to be detected. With the few exceptions, little is known about novae behaviour prior to maximum light. A theoretically-predicted population of ultra-fast novae with t2<1d is evading…
RS Ophiuchi is a recurrent nova system that experiences outbursts every ~20 years, implying accretion at a high rate onto a massive white dwarf. However, previous X-ray observations of the system in quiescence have detected only faint…
We have analyzed {\it Rossi} X-ray timing explorer (RXTE) pointed observations of the outbursts of black hole and neutron star soft X-ray transients in which an initial low/hard state or `island' state, followed by a transition to a softer…
In some luminous supersoft X-ray sources (SSSs), hydrogen accretes onto the surface of a white dwarf at rates more-or-less compatible with steady nuclear burning. The white dwarfs in these systems therefore have a good chance to grow in…
Supergiant fast X-ray transients are a new class of high mass X-ray binaries recently discovered with INTEGRAL. Hours long outbursts from these sources have been observed on numerous occasions at luminosities of ~1E36-1E37 erg/s, whereas…
We report the discovery of X-ray emission at the position of the old classical nova DK Lacertae using the Swift satellite. Three observations were conducted using the X-ray telescope 62 years after the discovery of the nova, yielding 46…
2S 0918-549 is a low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) with a low optical to X-ray flux ratio. Probably it is an ultracompact binary with an orbital period shorter than 60 min. Such binaries cannot harbor hydrogen rich donor stars. As with other…
Astrophysical jets seem to occur in nearly all types of accreting objects: from supermassive black holes to young stellar objects. Based on X-ray binaries, a unified scenario describing the disc/jet coupling has evolved and extended to many…
V5116 Sgr (Nova Sgr 2005 No. 2), discovered on 2005 July 4, was observed with XMM-Newton in March 2007, 20 months after the optical outburst. The X-ray spectrum shows that the nova had evolved to a pure supersoft X-ray source, with no…
A nova eruption irradiates and heats the donor star in a cataclysmic variable to high temperatures $T_{\rm irr}$, causing its outer layers to expand and overflow the Roche lobe. We calculate the donor's heating and expansion both…
In the settling accretion theory, which is applicable to quasi-spherical accreting slowly rotating magnetized neutron stars with X-ray luminosity $L_x\lesssim 4\times 10^{36}$~erg/s, bright X-ray flares ($\sim 10^{38}-10^{40}$~ergs)…
We report the discovery of an X-ray/UV stellar flare from the source LMC 335, captured by XMM-Newton in the field of the Large Magellanic Cloud. The flare event was recorded continuously in X-ray for its first 10 hours from the precursor to…
An attractive scenario for producing Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) is a double detonation, where detonation of an accreted helium layer triggers ignition of a C/O core. Whether or not such a mechanism can explain some or most SNe Ia depends…
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…
We report on a long-term monitoring of a newly discovered X-ray nova, MAXI J1910-057 (= Swift J1910.2-0546), by MAXI and Swift. The new X-ray transient was first detected on 2012 May 31 by MAXI Gas Slit Camera (GSC) and Swift Burst Alert…
In recent years, giant amplitude X-ray flares have been observed from a handful of non-active galaxies. The most plausible scenario of these unusual phenomena is tidal disruption of a star by a quiescent supermassive black hole at the…