THE ELM SURVEY. V. MERGING MASSIVE WHITE DWARF BINARIES
Abstract
We present the discovery of 17 low-mass white dwarfs (WDs) in short-period (P {<=} 1 day) binaries. Our sample includes four objects with remarkable log g {approx_equal} 5 surface gravities and orbital solutions that require them to be double degenerate binaries. All of the lowest surface gravity WDs have metal lines in their spectra implying long gravitational settling times or ongoing accretion. Notably, six of the WDs in our sample have binary merger times <10 Gyr. Four have {approx}>0.9 M{sub Sun} companions. If the companions are massive WDs, these four binaries will evolve into stable mass transfer AM CVn systems and possibly explode as underluminous supernovae. If the companions are neutron stars, then these may be millisecond pulsar binaries. These discoveries increase the number of detached, double degenerate binaries in the ELM Survey to 54; 31 of these binaries will merge within a Hubble time.
- Authors:
-
- Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory, 60 Garden St, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)
- Homer L. Dodge Department of Physics and Astronomy, University of Oklahoma, 440 W. Brooks St., Norman, OK, 73019 (United States)
- Publication Date:
- OSTI Identifier:
- 22126602
- Resource Type:
- Journal Article
- Journal Name:
- Astrophysical Journal
- Additional Journal Information:
- Journal Volume: 769; Journal Issue: 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Journal ID: ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
- Subject:
- 79 ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY; EDGE LOCALIZED MODES; GALAXIES; GRAVITATION; MASS TRANSFER; METALS; NEUTRON STARS; NEUTRONS; PULSARS; SUPERNOVAE; SURFACES; WHITE DWARF STARS
Citation Formats
Brown, Warren R., Kenyon, Scott J., Kilic, Mukremin, Gianninas, A., and Allende Prieto, Carlos, E-mail: wbrown@cfa.harvard.edu, E-mail: skenyon@cfa.harvard.edu, E-mail: kilic@ou.edu, E-mail: alexg@nhn.ou.edu, E-mail: callende@iac.es. THE ELM SURVEY. V. MERGING MASSIVE WHITE DWARF BINARIES. United States: N. p., 2013.
Web. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/769/1/66.
Brown, Warren R., Kenyon, Scott J., Kilic, Mukremin, Gianninas, A., & Allende Prieto, Carlos, E-mail: wbrown@cfa.harvard.edu, E-mail: skenyon@cfa.harvard.edu, E-mail: kilic@ou.edu, E-mail: alexg@nhn.ou.edu, E-mail: callende@iac.es. THE ELM SURVEY. V. MERGING MASSIVE WHITE DWARF BINARIES. United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/769/1/66
Brown, Warren R., Kenyon, Scott J., Kilic, Mukremin, Gianninas, A., and Allende Prieto, Carlos, E-mail: wbrown@cfa.harvard.edu, E-mail: skenyon@cfa.harvard.edu, E-mail: kilic@ou.edu, E-mail: alexg@nhn.ou.edu, E-mail: callende@iac.es. 2013.
"THE ELM SURVEY. V. MERGING MASSIVE WHITE DWARF BINARIES". United States. https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/769/1/66.
@article{osti_22126602,
title = {THE ELM SURVEY. V. MERGING MASSIVE WHITE DWARF BINARIES},
author = {Brown, Warren R. and Kenyon, Scott J. and Kilic, Mukremin and Gianninas, A. and Allende Prieto, Carlos, E-mail: wbrown@cfa.harvard.edu, E-mail: skenyon@cfa.harvard.edu, E-mail: kilic@ou.edu, E-mail: alexg@nhn.ou.edu, E-mail: callende@iac.es},
abstractNote = {We present the discovery of 17 low-mass white dwarfs (WDs) in short-period (P {<=} 1 day) binaries. Our sample includes four objects with remarkable log g {approx_equal} 5 surface gravities and orbital solutions that require them to be double degenerate binaries. All of the lowest surface gravity WDs have metal lines in their spectra implying long gravitational settling times or ongoing accretion. Notably, six of the WDs in our sample have binary merger times <10 Gyr. Four have {approx}>0.9 M{sub Sun} companions. If the companions are massive WDs, these four binaries will evolve into stable mass transfer AM CVn systems and possibly explode as underluminous supernovae. If the companions are neutron stars, then these may be millisecond pulsar binaries. These discoveries increase the number of detached, double degenerate binaries in the ELM Survey to 54; 31 of these binaries will merge within a Hubble time.},
doi = {10.1088/0004-637X/769/1/66},
url = {https://www.osti.gov/biblio/22126602},
journal = {Astrophysical Journal},
issn = {0004-637X},
number = 1,
volume = 769,
place = {United States},
year = {Mon May 20 00:00:00 EDT 2013},
month = {Mon May 20 00:00:00 EDT 2013}
}