Related papers: Superburst: surface phenomenon of compact objects
The temporal structure of Gamma Ray Bursts can be interpreted assuming as a inner engine a neutron star which undergoes a progressive compactification via production of strangeness (hyperons and kaons) and quarks. We will propose a…
Helium star--compact object binaries, and helium star--neutron star binaries in particular, are widely believed to be the progenitors of the observed double neutron star systems. In these, the second neutron star is presumed to be the…
Roughly a dozen X-ray binaries are presently known in which the compact accreting primary stars are too massive to be neutron stars. These primaries are identified as black holes, though there is as yet no definite proof that any of the…
I review the basic phenomenology and theory of the millisecond brightness oscillations observed during thermonuclear X-ray bursts from 13 of approximately 70 accreting neutron stars in low-mass X-ray binaries. Compelling observations…
Starburst (SB) galaxies are a rare population of galaxies with star formation rates (SFRs) greatly exceeding those of the majority of star-forming galaxies with similar stellar mass. It is unclear whether these bursts are the result of…
SU Uma stars after their long superoutbursts often show single or multiple rebrightenings. We show how this phenomenon can be understood as repeated reflections of transition waves which mediate changes between the hot and the cool state of…
The outbursts of black hole X-ray transients can be understood as caused by a limit cycle instability in the accretion disk, similar to dwarf nova outbursts. For adequately low mass overflow rates from the companion star long outburst…
We use cosmological SPH simulations to study the effects of mergers in the star formation history of galactic objects in hierarchical clustering scenarios. We find that during some merger events, gaseous discs can experience two starbursts:…
Creation of strange quark stars through strong interaction deconfinement is studied based on modern estimates of hyperon formation in neutron stars. The hyperon abundance is shown to be large enough so that if strange quark matter (SQM) is…
Gamma-ray bursts (GRBs) are the most luminous electromagnetic burst in the Universe. They occur when a rapidly rotating massive star collapses or a binary neutron star merges. These events leave a newborn central compact object, either a…
We discuss three classes of x-ray transients to highlight three new types of transients found with the Wide Field Cameras onboard BeppoSAX. First there are the transients related to Low Mass X-ray Binaries in outburst, typically lasting…
We show some of the most important reasons why the likely fate of the merger of a neutron star with another compact object may be to yield a short gamma-ray burst (sGRB). Emphasis is made on some robust results that general relativistic…
Blue-supergiant stars develop into core-collapse supernovae --- one of the most energetic outbursts in the universe --- when all nuclear burning fuel is exhausted in the stellar core. Previous attempts failed to explain observed explosions…
It is surprising to find dust around B type stars, as in the case of B[e] stars. These stars exhibit a dense, dusty environment witnessed by their infrared-excess and many emission lines from permitted and forbidden transitions. Given the…
$\gamma$-ray bursts have baffled theorists ever since their accidental discovery at the sixties. We suggest that these bursts originate in merger of neutron star binaries, taking place at cosmological distances. These mergers release…
Coalescing binary systems, consisting of two collapsed objects, are among the most promising sources of high frequency gravitational waves signals detectable, in principle, by ground-based interferometers. Binary systems of Neutron Star or…
Observations of intensely bright star-forming galaxies both close by and in the distant Universe at first glance seem to emphasize their similarity. But look a little closer, and differences emerge.
Hydrogen and helium accreted onto a neutron star undergo thermonuclear burning. Explosive burning is observed as a type I X-ray burst. We describe the different burning regimes and focus on some of the current inconsistencies between theory…
Binary stars produce an array of dramatic astrophysical phenomena. They allow us to probe stellar structure, nuclear physics, and gravitational wave physics. They also produce the powerful supernovae that allow us to measure the scale of…
Type I outbursts in Be/X-ray binaries are usually associated with the eccentricity of the binary orbit. The neutron star accretes gas from the outer parts of the decretion disk around the Be star at each periastron passage. However, this…