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We report the discovery of two new Galactic accreting compact objects consistent with the respective positions of the unassociated Fermi-LATgamma-ray sources 4FGL J0639.1-8009 and 4FGL J1824.2+1231. A combination of new and archival X-ray data from Chandra, XMM-Newton, Swift/XRT, and eROSITA reveals a variable X-ray source in each gamma-ray error ellipse. Both candidate counterparts show power-law spectra with photon indices Gamma ∼ 1.7 to 1.9. Optical follow-up photometry and spectroscopy show rapid high-amplitude variability unrelated to orbital motion and persistent accretion disk spectra for both objects. We demonstrate that the properties of these X-ray/optical sources are at odds with the known phenomenology of accreting white dwarfs, but are consistent with the observed properties of the subluminous disk state of transitional millisecond pulsars. This brings the census of confirmed or candidate transitional millisecond pulsars in the Galactic field to nine. We show this potentially represents <~ 10% of the total population of transitional millisecond pulsars within 8 kpc. 

ABSTRACT While nova eruptions produce some of the most common and dramatic dust formation episodes among astrophysical transients, the demographics of dust-forming novae remain poorly understood. Here, we present a statistical study of dust formation in 40 novae with high-quality optical/IR light curves, quantitatively distinguishing dust-forming from non-dust-forming novae while exploring the properties of the dust events. We find that 50–70 per cent of novae produce dust, significantly higher than previous estimates. Dust-forming novae can be separated from those that do not show dust formation by using the largest redward ($V-K$) colour change from peak visible brightness; ($V-J$) or ($V-H$) offer useful but less sensitive constraints. This makes optical+IR photometry a powerful tool to quantify dust formation in novae. We find that novae detected in GeV $$\gamma$$-rays by Fermi-LAT appear to form dust more often than novae not detected by Fermi, implying a possible connection between $$\gamma$$-ray-producing shocks and dust production. We also find that novae that evolve very quickly ($$t_2 < 10$$ d) are much less likely to form dust, in agreement with previous findings. We confirm a correlation between $$t_2$$ and the time of the onset of dust formation (which occurs $$\sim$$1 week–3 months after maximum light), but conclude that it is primarily an observational artefact driven by dust formation determining when a nova drops 2 mag below peak. The significant fraction of novae that form dust make them ideal laboratories in our Galactic backyard to tackle the puzzle of dust formation around explosive transients. 

ABSTRACT The light curves of radioactive transients, such as supernovae and kilonovae, are powered by the decay of radioisotopes, which release high-energy leptons through $$\beta ^+$$ and $$\beta ^-$$ decays. These leptons deposit energy into the expanding ejecta. As the ejecta density decreases during expansion, the plasma becomes collisionless, with particle motion governed by electromagnetic forces. In such environments, strong or turbulent magnetic fields are thought to confine particles, though the origin of these fields and the confinement mechanism have remained unclear. Using fully kinetic particle-in-cell (PIC) simulations, we demonstrate that plasma instabilities can naturally confine high-energy leptons. These leptons generate magnetic fields through plasma streaming instabilities, even in the absence of pre-existing fields. The self-generated magnetic fields slow lepton diffusion, enabling confinement, and transferring energy to thermal electrons and ions. Our results naturally explain the positron trapping inferred from late-time observations of thermonuclear and core-collapse supernovae. Furthermore, they suggest potential implications for electron dynamics in the ejecta of kilonovae. We also estimate synchrotron radio luminosities from positrons for Type Ia supernovae and find that such emission could only be detectable with next-generation radio observatories from a Galactic or local-group supernova in an environment without any circumstellar material. 

Abstract We present a systematic study of the BVRI colours of novae over the course of their eruptions. Where possible, interstellar reddening was measured using the equivalent widths of Diffuse Interstellar Bands (DIBs). Some novae lack spectra with sufficient resolution and signal-to-noise ratios; therefore, we supplement as necessary with 3D and 2D dust maps. Utilising only novae with DIB- or 3D-map-based E(B − V), we find an average intrinsic (B − V)0 colour of novae at V-band light curve peak of 0.20 with a standard deviation of 0.31, based on 25 novae. When the light curve has declined by 2 magnitudes (t2), we find an average (B − V)0 = −0.03 with a standard deviation of 0.19. These average colours are consistent with previous findings, although the spreads are larger than previously found due to more accurate reddening estimates. We also examined the intrinsic (R − I)0 and (V − R)0 colours across our sample. These colours behave similarly to (B − V)0, except that the (V − R)0 colour gets redder after peak, likely due to the contributions of emission line flux. We searched for correlations between nova colours and t2, peak V-band absolute magnitude, and GeV γ-ray luminosity, but find no statistically significant correlations. Nova colours can therefore be used as standard “crayons” to estimate interstellar reddening from photometry alone, with 0.2–0.3 mag uncertainty. We present a novel Bayesian strategy for estimating distances to Galactic novae based on these E(B − V) measurements, independent of assumptions about luminosity, built using 3D dust maps and a stellar mass model of the Milky Way. 

We present the discovery of PSR J1947–1120, a new huntsman millisecond pulsar with a red giant companion star in a 10.3 day orbit. This pulsar was found via optical, X-ray, and radio follow-up of the previously unassociated gamma-ray source 4FGL J1947.6–1121. PSR J1947–1120 is the second confirmed pulsar in the huntsman class and establishes this as a bona fide subclass of millisecond pulsars. We use MESA models to show that huntsman pulsars can be naturally explained as neutron star binaries whose secondaries are currently in the “red bump” region of the red giant branch, temporarily underfilling their Roche lobes and hence halting mass transfer. Huntsman pulsars offer a new view of the formation of typical millisecond pulsars, allowing novel constraints on the efficiency of mass transfer and recycling at an intermediate stage in the process. 

Abstract By using surface brightness maps of Tycho’s supernova remnant (SNR) in radio and X-rays, along with the properties of thermal and synchrotron emission, we have derived the postshock density and magnetic field (MF) strength distributions over the projection of this remnant. Our analysis reveals a density gradient oriented toward the northwest, while the MF strength gradient aligns with the Galactic plane, pointing eastward. Additionally, utilizing this MF map, we have derived the spatial distributions of the cutoff frequency and maximum energy of electrons in Tycho’s SNR. We further comment on the implications of these findings for interpreting the gamma-ray emission from Tycho’s SNR. 

Abstract We present the Local GroupL-Band Survey, a Karl G. Jansky Very Large Array (VLA) survey producing the highest-quality 21 cm and 1–2 GHz radio continuum images to date, for the six VLA-accessible, star-forming, Local Group galaxies. Leveraging the VLA’s spectral multiplexing power, we simultaneously survey the 21 cm line at high 0.4 km s⁻¹velocity resolution, the 1–2 GHz polarized continuum, and four OH lines. For the massive spiral M31, the dwarf spiral M33, and the dwarf irregular galaxies NGC 6822, IC 10, IC 1613, and the Wolf–Lundmark–Melotte Galaxy, we use all four VLA configurations and the Green Bank Telescope to reach angular resolutions of <5″ (10–20 pc) for the 21 cm line with <10²⁰cm⁻²column density sensitivity, and even sharper views (<2″; 5–10 pc) of the continuum. Targeting these nearby galaxies (D ≲ 1 Mpc) reveals a sharp, resolved view of the atomic gas, including 21 cm absorption, and continuum emission from supernova remnants and Hiiregions. These data sets can be used to test theories of the abundance and formation of cold clouds, the driving and dissipation of interstellar turbulence, and the impact of feedback from massive stars and supernovae. Here, we describe the survey design and execution, scientific motivation, data processing, and quality assurance. We provide a first look at and publicly release the wide-field 21 cm Hidata products for M31, M33, and four dwarf irregular targets in the survey, which represent some of the highest-physical-resolution 21 cm observations of any external galaxies beyond the LMC and SMC. 

ABSTRACT V745 Sco is a Galactic symbiotic recurrent nova with nova eruptions in 1937, 1989, and 2014. We study the behaviour of V745 Sco at radio wavelengths (0.6–37 GHz), covering both its 1989 and 2014 eruptions and informed by optical, X-ray, and $$\gamma$$-ray data. The radio light curves are synchrotron-dominated. Surprisingly, compared to expectations for synchrotron emission from explosive transients such as radio supernovae, the light curves spanning 0.6–37 GHz all peak around the same time ($$\sim$$18–26 d after eruption) and with similar flux densities (5–9 mJy). We model the synchrotron light curves as interaction of the nova ejecta with the red giant wind, but find that simple spherically symmetric models with wind-like circumstellar material (CSM) cannot explain the radio light curve. Instead, we conclude that the shock suddenly breaks out of a dense CSM absorbing screen around 20 d after eruption, and then expands into a relatively low-density wind ($$\dot{M}_{out} \approx 10^{-9}\!-\!10^{-8}$$ M$$_{\odot }$$ yr$$^{-1}$$ for $$v_w = 10$$ km s$$^{-1}$$) out to $$\sim$$1 yr post-eruption. The dense, close-in CSM may be an equatorial density enhancement or a more spherical red giant wind with $$\dot{M}_{in} \approx [5\!-\!10] \times 10^{-7}$$ M$$_{\odot }$$ yr$$^{-1}$$, truncated beyond several $$\times 10^{14}$$ cm. The outer lower-density CSM would not be visible in typical radio observations of Type Ia supernovae: V745 Sco cannot be ruled out as a Type Ia progenitor based on CSM constraints alone. Complementary constraints from the free–free radio optical depth and the synchrotron luminosity imply the shock is efficient at accelerating relativistic electrons and amplifying magnetic fields, with $$\epsilon _e$$ and $$\epsilon _B \approx 0.01\!-\!0.1$$. 

Abstract We present a long-period radio transient (GLEAM-X J0704−37) discovered to have an optical counterpart, consistent with a cool main-sequence star of spectral type M3. The radio periodicity occurs at the longest period yet found, 2.9 hr, and was discovered in archival low-frequency data from the Murchison Widefield Array. High time resolution observations from MeerKAT show that pulsations from the source display complex microstructure and high linear polarisation, suggesting a pulsar-like emission mechanism occurring due to strong, ordered magnetic fields. The timing residuals, measured over more than a decade, show tentative evidence of a ∼6 yr modulation. The high Galactic latitude of the system and the M-dwarf star excludes a magnetar interpretation, suggesting a more likely M-dwarf/white dwarf binary scenario for this system. 

Abstract We present the discovery of a new optical/X-ray source likely associated with the Fermi γ -ray source 4FGL J1408.6–2917. Its high-amplitude periodic optical variability, large spectroscopic radial-velocity semiamplitude, evidence for optical emission lines and flaring, and X-ray properties together imply the source is probably a new black widow millisecond pulsar binary. We compile the properties of the 41 confirmed and suspected field black widows, finding a median secondary mass of 0.027 ± 0.003 M ⊙ . Considered jointly with the more massive redback millisecond pulsar binaries, we find that the “spider” companion mass distribution remains strongly bimodal, with essentially zero systems having companion masses of between ∼0.07 and 0.1 M ⊙ . X-ray emission from black widows is typically softer and less luminous than in redbacks, consistent with less efficient particle acceleration in the intrabinary shock in black widows, excepting a few systems that appear to have more efficient “redback-like” shocks. Together black widows and redbacks dominate the census of the fastest spinning field millisecond pulsars in binaries with known companion types, making up ≳80% of systems with P spin < 2 ms. Similar to redbacks, the neutron star masses in black widows appear on average significantly larger than the canonical 1.4 M ⊙ , and many of the highest-mass neutron stars claimed to date are black widows with M NS ≳ 2.1 M ⊙ . Both of these observations are consistent with an evolutionary picture where spider millisecond pulsars emerge from short orbital period progenitors that had a lengthy period of mass transfer initiated while the companion was on the main sequence, leading to fast spins and high masses.