The GALAH Survey and Symbiotic Stars. I. Discovery and follow-up of 33 candidate accreting-only systems
U. Munari, G. Traven, N. Masetti, P. Valisa, G. -L. Righetti, F. -J. Hambsch, A. Frigo, K. Cotar, G. M. De Silva, K. C. Freeman, G. F. Lewis, S. L. Martell, S. … 展开作者
U. Munari, G. Traven, N. Masetti, P. Valisa, G. -L. Righetti, F. -J. Hambsch, A. Frigo, K. Cotar, G. M. De Silva, K. C. Freeman, G. F. Lewis, S. L. Martell, S. Sharma, J. D. Simpson, Y. -S. Ting, R. A. Wittenmyer, D. B. Zucker
We have identified a first group of 33 new candidates for symbiotic stars (SySt) of the accreting-only variety among the 600,255 stars so far observed by the GALAH high-resolution spectroscopic survey of the Southern Hemisphere, more than doubling the number of those previously known. GALAH aims to high latitudes and this offers the possibility to sound the Galaxy for new SySt away from the usual Plane and Bulge hunting regions. In this paper we focus on SySt of the M spectral type, showing an Halpha emission with a peak in excess of 0.5 above the adjacent continuum level, and not affected by coherent radial pulsations. These constraints will be relaxed in future studies. The 33 new candidate SySt were subjected to a vast array of follow-up confirmatory observations (X-ray/UV observations with the Swift satellite, search for optical flickering, presence of a near-UV upturn in ground-based photometric and spectroscopic data, radial velocity changes suggestive of orbital motion, variability of the emission line profiles). According to Gaia eDR3 parallaxes, the new SySt are located at the tip of the Giant Branch, sharing the same distribution in M(Ks) of the well established SySt. The accretion luminosities of the new SySt are in the range 1-10 Lsun, corresponding to mass-accretion rates of 0.1-1x10(-9) Msun/yr for WDs of 1 Msun. The M giant of one of the new SySt presents a large Lithium over-abundance.
We report the discovery and characterization of a new symbiotic star of the accreting-only variety, which we observed in the optical/near-infrared (NIR) with VLT/X-Shooter and in the X-rays/ultraviolet with Swift/UVOT+XRT. The new symbiotic star, THA 15-31, was previously described as a pre-main sequence star belonging to the Lupus~3 association. Our observations, ancillary data, and Gaia EDR3 parallax indicate that THA 15-31 is a symbiotic star composed of an M6III red giant and an accreting companion, is subject to E(B-V)=0.38 reddening, and is located at a distance of ~12 kpc and at 1.8 kpc…
Symbiotic binaries are long period interacting binaries consisting of a white dwarf (WD) accreting material from a cool evolved giant star via stellar winds. In this paper we study the symbiotic binary LIN 358 located in the SMC. We have observed LIN 358 with the integral field spectrograph WiFeS and obtained its line emission spectrum. With the help of the plasma simulation and spectral synthesis code Cloudy, we have constructed a 2D photo-ionisation model of LIN 358. From comparison with the observations, we have determined the colour temperature of the WD in LIN 358 to be 19 eV, its bolomet…
Symbiotic stars belong to a group of interacting binaries that display a wide variety of phenomena, including prominent outbursts connected with mass transfer, as well as stellar winds, jets, eclipses, or intrinsic variability of the components. Dozens of new symbiotic stars and candidates have been discovered in recent years. However, there are many objects which are still poorly studied. Some symbiotic candidates suspected in the literature have never been studied spectroscopically. In this contribution, we present the first results of the ongoing campaign focused on symbiotic candidates. In…
We report photometric observations of the hidden symbiotic star SU Lyn in the optical bands. In five nights we detect a weak flickering in U band with amplitude of about 0.05 magnitudes. No intranight variations are found in B, V, g' and r' bands. This is one more indication that the secondary component is a white dwarf accreting at low accretion rate. We also searched for intranight variability of a dozen related object (RR Boo, RT Boo, AM Cyg, AG Peg, BF Cyg, NQ Gem, StHa190, V627 Cas, XX Oph, FS Cet and Y Gem) in which no variability above the observational errors is detected.
We present and discuss the results of our photometric and spectroscopic monitoring of 2SXPS J173508.4-292958 carried out from April to August 2020. This X-ray source, in the foreground with respect to the Galactic center, brightened in X-rays during 2020, prompting our follow-up optical observations. We found the star to contain a K4III giant with a modest but highly variable Halpha emission, composed by a ~470 km/s wide component with superimposed a narrow absorption, offset by a positive velocity with respect to the giant. No orbital motion is detected for the K4III, showing an heliocentric …
We present and analyze optical photometry and high resolution SALT spectra of the symbiotic recurrent nova V3890 Sgr at quiescence. The orbital period, P=747.6 days has been derived from both photometric and spectroscopic data. Our double-line spectroscopic orbits indicate that the mass ratio is q=M_g/M_WD=0.78+/-0.05, and that the component masses are M_WD=1.35+/-0.13 Msun, and M_g=1.05+/-0.11 Msun. The orbit inclination is approximately 67-69 degr. The red giant is filling (or nearly filling) its Roche lobe, and the distance set by its Roche lobe radius, d=9 kpc, is consistent with that resu…
LIN 358 and SMC N73 are two symbiotic binaries in the halo of the Small Magellanic Cloud, each composed of a hot white dwarf accreting from a cool giant companion. In this work, we characterize these systems using a combination of SED-fitting to the extant photometric data spanning a broad wavelength range (X-ray/ultraviolet to near-infrared), detailed analysis of the APOGEE spectra for the giant stars, and orbit fitting to high quality radial velocities from the APOGEE database. Using the calculated Roche lobe radius for the giant component and the mass ratio for each system, it is found that…
Theoretical predictions of the population of Galactic symbiotic stars (SySts) are highly inconsistent with the current known population. Despite intense effort over the past decades, observations are still far below the predictions. The majority of known SySts so far are identified based on selection criteria established in the optical regime. The recent discovery of SU Lyn with very faint optical emission lines uncloaked a subgroup of SySts with accreting-only white dwarfs. In this particular case, the luminous red giant may overshadow the dimmed white dwarf companion. A new approach to searc…
Symbiotic binaries sometimes hide their symbiotic nature for significant periods of time. There is mounting observational evidence that in those symbiotics that are powered solely by accretion of red-giant's wind material onto a white dwarf, without any quasi-steady shell burning on the surface of the white dwarf, the characteristic emission lines in the optical spectrum can vanish, leaving the semblance of an isolated red giant spectrum. Here we present compelling evidence that this disappearance of optical emission lines from the spectrum of RT Cru during 2019 was due to a decrease in the ac…
Draco C1 is a known symbiotic binary star system composed of a carbon red giant and a hot, compact companion -- likely a white dwarf -- belonging to the Draco dwarf spheroidal galaxy. From near-infrared spectroscopic observations taken by the Apache Point Observatory Galactic Evolution Experiment (APOGEE-2), part of Sloan Digital Sky Survey IV, we provide updated stellar parameters for the cool, giant component, and constrain the temperature and mass of the hot, compact companion. Prior measurements of the periodicity of the system, based on only a few epochs of radial velocity data or relativ…
Regulation of accretion by its outflow in a symbiotic star: the 2016 outflow fast state of MWC 560
吸积盘是如何受到其外流的影响?为了解决从冷巨星吸积的白矮星的这个问题,我们在其2016年光学高态期间对流出驱动共生星MWC 560(=V694 Mon)进行了光学,无线电,X射线和紫外线观测。我们跟踪了多波长的变化,这些变化表明,在长达数月的外流快态开始时,外流功率突然增加,就像光通量达到峰值一样:(1)巴耳末吸收速度突然加倍;(2)射电通量出现$20$ $μ$ Jy/月的增加;(3)软X射线通量出现数量级的增加。并置到以前的X射线观测和他们的同时代的光谱,我们推断,高速和低速的光学外流组件必须同时存在,以产生一个大的软X射线通量,这可能源于这些快速和缓慢的吸收碰撞的冲击。我们的光学和紫外光谱表明,宽吸收线气体在整个2016年流出快速状态中是快速,稳定和致密的($\gtrsim10^{6.5}$ cm $^{-3}$),稳定地供给低密度($\lesssim10^{5.5}$ cm $^{-3}$)区域的放射性气体。持续的光学和紫外线闪烁表明吸积盘保持完整。这些性质在2016年的稳定性与MWC 560在1990年爆发时的不稳定性形成对比,尽管圆盘达到了类似的吸积率。我们认为,2016年稳定的快速外流的自我调节效应阻止了内盘的灾难性弹射。这种行为在一个共生的二类似盘/流出的关系,在X射线双星吸积状态的变化。
Ionized Nebulae Around Two New Symbiotic Stars: GR Cygni and [D75] 141
Pennsylvania State University(宾夕法尼亚州立大学);Space Telescope Science Institute(太空望远镜科学研究所);Rocket Girls Ranch Observatory(火箭女孩牧场天文台);Eklund Smurf Observatory(埃克伦德史密夫天文台);Deep Space Imaging Network(深空成像网络);INAF National Institute of Astrophysics, Astronomical Observatory of Padova(意大利国家天体物理研究所帕多瓦天文台);Stark Bayou Observatory(斯塔克湾天文台);Hobby-Eberly Telescope, University of Texas at Austin(霍比-埃伯利望远镜,得克萨斯大学奥斯汀分校)