X-Ray Grating Observations of Recurrent Nova T Pyxidis During The 2011 Outburst
| Autor: | Tofflemire, Benjamin M., Orio, Marina, Page, Kim L., Osborne, Julian P., Ciroi, Stefano, Cracco, Valentina, Di Mille, Francesco, Maxwell, Michael |
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| Rok vydání: | 2013 |
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| Druh dokumentu: | Working Paper |
| DOI: | 10.1088/0004-637X/779/1/22 |
| Popis: | The recurrent nova T Pyx was observed with the X-ray gratings of Chandra and XMM-Newton, 210 and 235 days, respectively, after the discovery of the 2011 April 14 outburst. The X-ray spectra show prominent emission lines of C, N, and O, with broadening corresponding to a full width at half maximum of ~2000-3000 km/s, and line ratios consistent with high-density plasma in collisional ionization equilibrium. On day 210 we also measured soft X-ray continuum emission that appears to be consistent with a white dwarf (WD) atmosphere at a temperature ~420,000 K, partially obscured by anisotropic, optically thick ejecta. The X-ray continuum emission is modulated with the photometric and spectroscopic period observed in quiescence. The continuum at day 235 indicated a WD atmosphere at a consistent effective temperature of 25 days earlier, but with a lower flux. The effective temperature indicates a mass of ~1 solar mass. The conclusion of partial WD obscuration is supported by the complex geometry of non-spherically-symmetric ejecta confirmed in recent optical spectra obtained with the Southern African Large Telescope (SALT) in November and December of 2012. These spectra exhibited prominent [O III] nebular lines with velocity structures typical of bipolar ejecta. Comment: Accepted to ApJ 2013 October 23, 14 pages, 9 figures, 3 tables |
| Databáze: | arXiv |
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