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ABSTRACT V3890 Sgr is a recurrent nova that has been seen in outburst three times so far, with the most recent eruption occurring on 2019 August 27 ut. This latest outburst was followed in detail by the Neil Gehrels Swift Observatory, from less than a day after the eruption until the nova entered the Sun observing constraint, with a small number of additional observations after the constraint ended. The X-ray light curve shows initial hard shock emission, followed by an early start of the supersoft source phase around day 8.5, with the soft emission ceasing by day 26. Together with the peak blackbody temperature of the supersoft spectrum being ∼100 eV, these timings suggest the white dwarf mass to be high, $$\sim 1.3\, {\rm M_{\odot }}$$. The UV photometric light curve decays monotonically, with the decay rate changing a number of times, approximately simultaneously with variations in the X-ray emission. The UV grism spectra show both line and continuum emission, with emission lines of N, C, Mg, and O being notable. These UV spectra are best dereddened using a Small Magellanic Cloud extinction law. Optical spectra from SMARTS show evidence of interaction between the nova ejecta and wind from the donor star, as well as the extended atmosphere of the red giant being flash-ionized by the supersoft X-ray photons. Data from NICER reveal a transient 83 s quasi-periodic oscillation, with a modulation amplitude of 5 per cent, adding to the sample of novae that show such short variabilities during their supersoft phase.
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The 2019 Outburst of the 2005 Classical Nova V1047 Cen: A Record Breaking Dwarf Nova Outburst or a New Phenomenon?
Abstract We present a detailed study of the 2019 outburst of the cataclysmic variable V1047 Cen, which hosted a classical nova eruption in 2005. The peculiar outburst occurred 14 yr after the classical nova event and lasted for more than 400 days, reaching an amplitude of around 6 magnitudes in the optical. Early spectral follow-up revealed what could be a dwarf nova (accretion disk instability) outburst. However, the outburst duration, high-velocity (>2000 km s −1 ) features in the optical line profiles, luminous optical emission, and presence of prominent long-lasting radio emission together suggest a phenomenon more exotic and energetic than a dwarf nova outburst. The outburst amplitude, radiated energy, and spectral evolution are also not consistent with a classical nova eruption. There are similarities between V1047 Cen’s 2019 outburst and those of classical symbiotic stars, but pre-2005 images of the field of V1047 Cen indicate that the system likely hosts a dwarf companion, implying a typical cataclysmic variable system. Based on our multiwavelength observations, we suggest that the outburst may have started with a brightening of the disk due to enhanced mass transfer or disk instability, possibly leading to enhanced nuclear shell burning on the white dwarf, which was already experiencing some level of quasi-steady shell burning. This eventually led to the generation of a wind and/or bipolar, collimated outflows. The 2019 outburst of V1047 Cen appears to be unique, and nothing similar has been observed in a typical cataclysmic variable system before, hinting at a potentially new astrophysical phenomenon.
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- Award ID(s):
- 1751874
- PAR ID:
- 10428039
- Author(s) / Creator(s):
- ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; more »
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- The Astrophysical Journal
- Volume:
- 939
- Issue:
- 1
- ISSN:
- 0004-637X
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- 6
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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Accepted Manuscript1.0
- Journal Article:
- https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ac913b
