Related papers: A Search for Unresolved Double Degenerates Using I…

We present the results of the first spectroscopic follow-up of 132 optically blue UV-excess sources selected from the UV-excess survey of the Northern Galactic Plane (UVEX). The UV-excess spectra are classified into different populations…

We present the results of 938 speckle measures of double stars and suspected double stars drawn mainly from the Hipparcos Catalogue, as well as 208 observations where no companion was noted. One hundred fourteen pairs have been resolved for…

A photometric and spectroscopic analysis of 152 cool white dwarf stars is presented. The discovery of 7 new DA white dwarfs, 2 new DQ white dwarfs, 1 new magnetic white dwarf, and 3 weak magnetic white dwarf candidates, is reported, as well…

The accretion of planetary debris into the atmospheres of white dwarfs leads to the presence of metal lines in their spectra. Cool metal-rich white dwarfs, which left the main-sequence many Gyr ago, allow the study of the remnants of the…

We present the discovery of 255 binary and six multiple system candidates with wide > 5" separation composed by ultracool dwarfs companions to stars, plus nine double ultracool dwarf systems. These systems were selected based on common…

Near-infrared photometry and spectroscopy is obtained for a heterogeneous sample of nearby white dwarfs with possible excess flux as identified primarily in the Two Micron All Sky Survey. Among the sample of 43 stars are a number of white…

We present a simple method for identifying candidate white dwarf systems with dusty exoplanetary debris based on a single temperature blackbody model fit to the infrared excess. We apply this technique to a sample of Southern Hemisphere…

White dwarfs with a F, G or K type companion represent the last common ancestor for a plethora of exotic systems throughout the galaxy, though to this point very few of them have been fully characterised in terms of orbital period and…

We present a series of systematic abundance measurements for 89 hydrogen atmosphere (DA-type) white dwarfs with temperatures spanning 16000-77000K drawn from the FUSE spectral archive. This is the largest study to date of white dwarfs where…

Astrometric observations of resolved binaries provide estimates of orbital periods and will eventually lead to measurement of dynamical masses. Only a few very low mass star and brown dwarf masses have been measured to date, and the…

We report on a large survey for double degenerate (DD) binaries as potential progenitors of type Ia supernovae with the UVES spectrograph at the ESO VLT (ESO SN Ia Progenitor surveY - SPY).

Close binary systems are the progenitors to both Type Ia supernovae and the compact object mergers that can be detected via gravitational waves. To achieve a binary with a small radial separation, it is believed that the system likely…

We present the identification of 13 DB + dM binaries and 2 DC + dM binaries from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS). Before the SDSS only 2 DB + dM binaries and 1 DC + dM binary were known. At least three, possibly 8, of the new DB + dM…

Hot subdwarf stars are faint, blue objects, and are the main contributors to the far-UV excess observed in elliptical galaxies. They offer an excellent laboratory to study close and wide binary systems, and to scrutinize their interiors…

We present the first catalogue of point-source UV-excess sources selected from the UVEX survey. UVEX images the Northern Galactic Plane in the U, g, r and HeI5875 bands in the Galactic latitude range -5deg<b<+5deg. Through an automated…

White dwarf stars frequently experience external pollution by heavy elements, and yet the intrinsically carbon-enriched DQ spectral class members fail to exhibit this phenomenon, representing a decades-old conundrum. This study reports a…

We report on follow-up observations of double degenerate (DD) white dwarfs from the Supernovae Ia Progenitor Survey (SPY). Orbital parameters of four systems, including a massive short period system, are presented.

The information contained in the Gaia Second Data Release (DR2) allows to search for the unusual objects with the pre-selected properties, literally constructing the stars with the desired characteristics. This work describes the idea of…

Spectral analysis needs the observation of lines of successive ionization stages in order to evaluate the ionization equilibrium (of a particular species) which is a sensitive indicator for the effective temperature. Since stars with…

Results are presented for a Hubble Space Telescope Advanced Camera for Surveys high-resolution imaging campaign of 90 white dwarfs with known or suspected low mass stellar and substellar companions. Of the 72 targets which remain candidate…