Amongst the hydrogen-deficient accreting binaries known as the "AM~CVn stars" are three systems with the shortest known orbital periods: HM Cnc (321 s), V407 Vul (569 s) and ES Cet (620 s). These compact binaries are predicted to be strong sources of persistent gravitational wave radiation. HM Cnc and V407 Vul are undergoing direct impact accretion in which matter transferred from their donor hits the accreting white dwarfs directly. ES Cet, is the longest period of the three and is amongst the most luminous AM CVn stars, but it is not known whether it accretes via a disk or direct impact. ES Cet displays strong HeII 4686 line emission, which is sometimes a sign of magnetically-controlled accretion. Peculiarly, although around one third of hydrogen accreting white dwarfs show evidence for magnetism, none have been found amongst helium accretors. We present the results of Magellan and VLT spectroscopic and spectropolarimetric observing campaigns dedicated to ES Cet with the aim of understanding its accretion structure. We find strong variability in our spectra on the 620 s period. The lines show evidence for double-peaked emission, characteristic for an accretion disc, with an additional component associated with the outermost disc, rather than a direct impact, that is broadly consistent with "S"-wave emission from the gas stream/disc impact region. This confirms beyond any doubt that 620\,s is the orbital period of ES Cet. We find no significant circular polarisation (below 0.1 %). The trailed spectra show that ES Cet's outer disc is eclipsed by the mass donor, revealing at the same time that the photometric minimum coincides with the hitherto unrecognised eclipse. ES Cet shows spectroscopic behaviour consistent with accretion via a disc, and is the shortest orbital period eclipsing AM CVn star known.
We report a long-term study of the eclipse times in the 10-minute helium binary ES Ceti. The binary period increases rapidly, with P/P-dot = 6.2x10^6 yr. This is consistent with the assumption that gravitational radiation (GR) drives the mass transfer, and appears to be the first dynamical evidence that GR is indeed the driver of evolution in this class of very old cataclysmic variables -- the AM Canum Venaticorum stars.
We present results of our spectroscopic campaign dedicated to the ultracompact binary ES Ceti. On the nights 2002 Oct. 27-28, 528 spectra were taken with the 6.5-meter telescope in Las Campanas Observatory in Chile. The averaged spectrum shown the double-peaked helium emission lines which imply the presence of an accretion disk in this system.
We present the results of a multi-component synthetic spectral analysis of the archival far ultraviolet spectra of the hot components of several AM CVn double degenerate interacting binaries with known distances from trigonometric parallaxes. Our analysis was carried out using the code BINSYN (Linnell & Hubeny 1996) which takes into account the donor companion star, the shock front which forms at the disk edge and the FUV and NUV energy distribution. We fixed the distance of each system at its parallax-derived value and adopted appropriate values of orbital inclination and white dwarf mass. We…
The data were obtained using two spectropolarimeters - Narval at the Bernard Lyot Telescope, Pic du Midi, France, and ESPaDOnS at CFHT, Hawaii. Thirty-eight circularly-polarized spectra have been collected in the period June 2010 - January 2012. The Least Square Deconvolution method was applied for extracting high signal-to-noise ratio line profiles, from which we measure the surface-averaged longitudinal magnetic field Bl. Chromospheric activity indicators CaII K, H_alpha, CaII IR (854.2 nm) and radial velocity were simultaneously measured and their variability was analysed together with the …
KUV 11370+4222 is a ZZ Ceti star discovered in 1996, which has not been observed since then. We performed observations for KUV 11370+4222 in 2010 January. From the Fourier transform spectrum of the light curves, ten independent modes are detected. We searched for the best-fitting model by using the observed periods to match the model periods and get it with the total mass of 0.625 ${\rm M_{\odot}}$, the effective temperature of 10950 K, and the helium mass fraction and hydrogen mass fraction of $10^{-2.2}$ and $10^{-4.0}$, respectively. We have found a triplet of frequency split by rotation, w…
ZZ Ceti stars are pulsating white dwarfs with a carbon-oxygen core build up during the core helium burning and thermally pulsing Asymptotic Giant Branch phases. Through the interpretation of their pulsation periods by means of asteroseismology, details about their origin and evolution can be inferred. The whole pulsation spectrum exhibited by ZZ Ceti stars strongly depends on the inner chemical structure. At present, there are several processes affecting the chemical profiles that are still not accurately determined. We present a study of the impact of the current uncertainties of the white dw…
We combine all the reliably-measured eigenperiods for hot, short-period ZZ Ceti stars onto one diagram and show that it has the features expected from evolutionary and pulsation theory. To make a more detailed comparison with theory we concentrate on a subset of 16 stars for which rotational splitting or other evidence gives clues to the spherical harmonic index (l) of the modes. The suspected l=1 periods in this subset of stars form a pattern of consecutive radial overtones that allow us to conduct ensemble seismology using published theoretical model grids. We find that the best-matching mod…
ZZ Ceti stars are pulsating white dwarfs with a carbon-oxygen core (or possibly ONe for the most massive stars) build up during the core helium burning (CHeB) and thermally pulsing Asymptotic Giant Branch (TP-AGB) phases. Through the interpretation of their pulsation periods by means of asteroseismology, details about their origin and evolution can be inferred. The whole pulsation spectrum exhibited by ZZ Ceti stars strongly depend on the inner chemical structure. At present, there are several processes affecting the chemical profiles that are still not accurately determined. We present a stud…
Using Liverpool Telescope+RISE photometry we identify the 2.78 hour period binary star CSS 41177 as a detached eclipsing double white dwarf binary with a 21,100K primary star and a 10,500K secondary star. This makes CSS 41177 only the second known eclipsing double white dwarf binary after NLTT 11748. The 2 minute long primary eclipse is 40% deep and the secondary eclipse 10% deep. From Gemini+GMOS spectroscopy we measure the radial velocities of both components of the binary from the Hα absorption line cores. These measurements, combined with the light curve information, yield white dwarf mass…
The star 1SWASP J024743.37-251549.2 was recently discovered to be a binary star in which an A-type dwarf star eclipses the remnant of a disrupted red giant star (WASP0247-25B). The remnant is in a rarely-observed state evolving to higher effective temperatures at nearly constant luminosity prior to becoming a very low-mass white dwarf composed almost entirely of helium, i.e., it is a pre-He-WD. We have used the WASP photometric database to find 17 eclipsing binary stars with orbital periods P=0.7 to 2.2 days with similar lightcurves to 1SWASP J024743.37-251549.2. The only star in this group pr…
We present phase-resolved spectroscopy and extensive survey photometry of the detached eclipsing binary system XY Cet, which is composed of two metallic-lined stars. We measure their masses to be 1.773 +/- 0.016 and 1.615 +/- 0.014 Msun and their radii to be 1.873 +/- 0.035 and 1.773 +/- 0.029 Rsun, resulting in logarithmic surface gravities of 4.142 +/- 0.016 and 4.149 +/- 0.014 (cgs). We determine effective temperatures of 7870 +/- 115 and 7620 +/- 125 K. The projected rotational velocities are 34.4 +/- 0.4 and 34.1 +/- 0.4 km/s, which are close to synchronous. Theoretical models cannot matc…
Element diffusion is a key physical process that substantially impacts the superficial abundances, internal structure, pulsation properties, and evolution of white dwarfs. We study the effect of Coulomb separation of ions in the cooling times of evolving white dwarfs, their chemical profiles, the Brunt-Väisälä (buoyancy) frequency, and the pulsational periods at the ZZ Ceti instability strip. We follow the full evolution of white-dwarf models derived from their progenitor history on the basis of a time-dependent element diffusion scheme that incorporates the effect of gravitational settling of…
We present time-resolved spectroscopy and photometry of the dwarf nova SBSS 1108+574, obtained during the 2012 outburst. Its quiescent spectrum is unusually rich in helium, showing broad, double-peaked emission lines from the accretion disc. We measure a line flux ratio HeI 5875/Halpha = 0.81 +/- 0.04, a much higher ratio than typically observed in cataclysmic variables (CVs). The outburst spectrum shows hydrogen and helium in absorption, with weak emission of Halpha and HeI 6678, as well as strong HeII emission. From our photometry, we find the superhump period to be 56.34 +/- 0.18 minutes, i…
We report the discovery of the first eclipsing detached double white dwarf (WD) binary. In a pulsation search, the low-mass helium core WD NLTT 11748 was targeted for fast (approx 1 minute) differential photometry with the Las Cumbres Observatory's Faulkes Telescope North. Rather than pulsations, we discovered approx 180 s 3%-6% dips in the photometry. Subsequent radial velocity measurements of the primary white dwarf from the Keck telescope found variations with a semi-amplitude K_1 = 271 +/- 3 km/s, and confirmed the dips as eclipses caused by an orbiting WD with a mass M_2 = 0.648-0.771 M_s…
Type Ia supernovae (SN Ia) are the most important standard candles for measuring the expansion history of the universe. The thermonuclear explosion of a white dwarf can explain their observed properties, but neither the progenitor systems nor any stellar remnants have been conclusively identified. Underluminous SN Ia have been proposed to originate from a so-called double-detonation of a white dwarf. After a critical amount of helium is deposited on the surface through accretion from a close companion, the helium is ignited causing a detonation wave that triggers the explosion of the white dwa…
We report an eclipse mapping study of the intermediate polar DQ Her based on time-resolved optical spectroscopy (~3800-5000A) covering 4 eclipses. Eclipse maps of the HeII 4686 line indicate that an azimuthally-and vertically-extended bright spot at disk rim is important source of reprocessing of x-rays from the magnetic poles. The disk spectrum is flat with no Balmer or Helium lines in the inner regions, and shows double-peaked emission lines in the intermediate and outer disk regions while the slope of the continuum becomes progressively redder with increasing radius. The inferred disk tempe…
KIC~8262223 is an eclipsing binary with a short orbital period ($P=1.61$ d). The {\it Kepler} light curves are of Algol-type and display deep and partial eclipses, ellipsoidal variations, and pulsations of Delta Scuti type. We analyzed the {\it Kepler} photometric data, complemented by phase-resolved spectra from the R-C Spectrograph on the 4-meter Mayall telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory and determined the fundamental parameters of this system. The low mass and oversized secondary ($M_2=0.20M_{\odot}$, $R_2=1.31R_{\odot}$) is the remnant of the donor star that transferred most of it…
We report the discovery and characterisation of a deeply eclipsing AM CVn-system, Gaia14aae (= ASSASN-14cn). Gaia14aae was identified independently by the All-Sky Automated Survey for Supernovae (ASAS-SN; Shappee et al. 2014) and by the Gaia Science Alerts project, during two separate outbursts. A third outburst is seen in archival Pan-STARRS-1 (PS1; Schlafly et al. 2012; Tonry et al. 2012; Magnier et al. 2013) and ASAS-SN data. Spectroscopy reveals a hot, hydrogen-deficient spectrum with clear double-peaked emission lines, consistent with an accreting double degenerate classification. We use …
We present high-speed ULTRACAM and SOFI photometry and X-shooter spectroscopy of the recently discovered 94 minute orbital period eclipsing white dwarf / main-sequence binary SDSS J085746.18+034255.3 (CSS 03170) and use these observations to measure the system parameters. We detect a shallow secondary eclipse and hence are able to determine an orbital inclination of 85.5 +/- 0.2 deg. The white dwarf has a mass of 0.51 +/- 0.05 Msun and a radius of 0.0247 +/- 0.0008 Rsun. With a temperature of 35,300 +/- 400K the white dwarf is highly over-inflated if it has a carbon-oxygen core, however if it …
We report the discovery of a new eclipsing polar, CRTS J035010.7+323230 (hereafter CRTS J0350+3232). We identified this cataclysmic variable (CV) candidate as a possible polar from its multi-year Catalina Real-Time Transient Survey (CRTS) optical light curve. Photometric monitoring of 22 eclipses in 2015 and 2017 was performed with the 2.1-m Otto Struve Telescope at McDonald Observatory. We derive an unambiguous high-precision ephemeris. Strong evidence that CRTS J0350+3232 is a polar comes from optical spectroscopy obtained over a complete orbital cycle using the Apache Point Observatory 3.5-…
We present a survey of variable stars detected in K2 Campaign 13 within the massive intermediate age ($\sim1$ Gyr) open cluster NGC 1817. We identify a complete sample of 44 red clump stars in the cluster, and have measured asteroseismic quantities ($ν_{\rm max}$ and/or $Δν$) for 29 of them. Five stars showed suppressed dipole modes, and the occurrence rates indicate that mode suppression is unaffected by evolution through core helium burning. A subset of the giants in NGC 1817 (and in the similarly aged cluster NGC 6811) have $ν_{\rm max}$ and $Δν$ values at or near the maximum observed for c…
We report the discovery of a bright (V=11.6 mag) eclipsing hot subdwarf binary of spectral type B with a late main sequence companion from the All Sky Automated Survey (ASAS 102322-3737.0). Such systems are called HW Vir stars after the prototype. The lightcurve shows a grazing eclipse and a strong reflection effect. An orbital period of P=0.13927 d, an inclination of i=65.86°, a mass ratio q=0.34, a radial velocity semiamplitude K_1=81.0 kms^-1, and other parameters are derived from a combined spectroscopic and photometric analysis. The short period can only be explained by a common envelope …
We report the discovery of the first short period binary in which a hot subdwarf star (sdOB) fills its Roche lobe and started mass transfer to its companion. The object was discovered as part of a dedicated high-cadence survey of the Galactic Plane named the Zwicky Transient Facility and exhibits a period of $P_{\rm orb}=39.3401(1)$ min, making it the most compact hot subdwarf binary currently known. Spectroscopic observations are consistent with an intermediate He-sdOB star with an effective temperature of $T_{\rm eff}=42,400\pm300$ K and a surface gravity of $\log(g)=5.77\pm0.05$. A high-sig…
An eclipsing 8.56 minute orbital period mass-transferring binary
Massachusetts Institute of Technology（麻省理工学院）；Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology（麻省理工学院卡弗里天体物理学与空间研究研究所）；University of Sheffield（谢菲尔德大学）；Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias（加那利天体物理研究所）；California Institute of Technology（加州理工学院）；Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie（马克斯·普朗克天文学研究所）；Homer L. Dodge Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Oklahoma（俄克拉荷马大学霍默·L·多格物理与天文系）；JILA, University of Colorado（科罗拉多大学JILA研究所）
