Related papers: The Eclipsing ULX in NGC 3379

We present the results of our study of the luminous (L_{X} ~ 10^{39} erg/s) X-ray binary CXOU J121538.2+361921 in NGC 4214, the high mass X-ray binary with the shortest known orbital period. Using Chandra data, we confirm the ~13,000 s (3.6…

Chandra observations of the Cartwheel galaxy reveal a population of ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) with lifetimes < 10^7 yr associated with a spreading wave of star formation which began some 3 x 10^8 yr ago. A population of high-mass…

The starbusting, nearby (D = 32.9 Mpc) spiral (Sc) galaxy NGC2276 belongs to the sparse group dominated by the elliptical galaxy NGC2300. NGC2276 is a remarkable galaxy, as it displays a disturbed morphology at many wavelengths. This is…

The end points of massive star evolution are poorly known, especially those in interacting binary systems containing compact objects, such as neutron stars or black holes. Such systems are bright in X-rays, and the most luminous among them…

Despite the 30-year history of ultra-luminous X-ray sources (ULXs) studies, issues like the majority of their physical natures (i.e., neutron stars, stellar-mass black holes, or intermediate black holes) as well as the accretion mechanisms…

A previously undetected X-ray source (L_X<10**36 erg/s) in the strongly star-forming galaxy M83 entered an ultraluminous state between August 2009 and December 2010. It was first seen with Chandra on 23 December 2010 at L_X ~ 4 10**39…

We obtained multi-epoch Very Large Telescope (VLT) optical spectroscopic data in 2011 and 2012 on the ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX) NGC 5408 X-1. We confirm that the HeII\lambda4686 line has a broad component with an average FWHM of…

We search for transient sources in a sample of ULXs from the 3XMM-DR4 release of the XMM-Newton Serendipitous Source Catalogue in order to find candidate neutron star ULXs alternating between an accreting state and the propeller regime, in…

Ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) are a class of accreting compact objects with X-ray luminosities above 1e39 erg/s. The ULX population counts several hundreds objects but only a minor fraction is well studied. Here we present a detailed…

A fraction of the Ultra Luminous X-ray (ULX) sources are known to be accreting neutron stars as they show coherent X-ray pulsations with pulse periods ranging from ~1-30 seconds. While initially thought to host intermediate-mass black…

We report on the serendipitous discovery of a new transient in NGC 5907, at a peak luminosity of 6.4x10^{39} erg/s. The source was undetected in previous 2012 Chandra observations with a 3 sigma upper limit on the luminosity of 1.5x10^{38}…

If ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) are powered by accretion onto stellar remnant black holes, then many must be accreting at super-Eddington rates. It is predicted that such high accretion rates should give rise to massive,…

We report the identification of a recurrent ultraluminous X-ray source (ULX), a highly absorbed X-ray source (possibly a background AGN), and a young supernova remnant near the center of the starburst galaxy M82. From a series of Chandra…

Ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) with Lx > 10^{39} ergs/s have been discovered in great numbers in external galaxies with ROSAT, Chandra, and XMM. The central question regarding this important class of sources is whether they represent an…

Ultraluminous X-ray sources (ULXs) are our best laboratories for studying extreme super-Eddington accretion. Most studies of these objects are of relatively persistent sources, however there is growing evidence to suggest a large fraction…

We studied the eclipsing ultraluminous X-ray source CG X-1 in the Circinus galaxy, re-examining two decades of {\it Chandra} and {\it XMM-Newton} observations. The short binary period (7.21 hr) and high luminosity ($L_{\rm X} \approx…

X-ray binaries with black hole (BH) accretors and massive star donors at short orbital periods of a few days can evolve into close binary BH systems (BBH) that merge within the Hubble time through stable mass transfer evolution. From…

Ultraluminous X-ray (ULX) pulsars are a new class of object powered by apparent super-critical accretion onto magnetized neutron stars. Three sources in this class identified so far; M82 X-2, NGC 5907 ULX-1 and NGC 7793 P13, have been found…

Ultra-luminous X-ray pulsars (ULXPs) provide a unique opportunity to study super-Eddington accretion. We present the results of a monitoring campaign of ULXP NGC 7793 P13. Over our four-year monitoring campaign with Swift, XMM-Newton, and…

We report on results from a one-year soft X-ray observing campaign of the ultraluminous X-ray pulsar NGC 300 ULX-1 by the Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer (NICER) during 2018--2019. Our analysis also made use of data from…