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Dramatic change in the boundary layer in the symbiotic recurrent nova T Coronae Borealis

Luna, GJM; Mukai, K; Sokoloski, JL; Nelson, T; Kuin, P; Segreto, A; Cusumano, G; ... Nuñez, NE; + view all (2018) Dramatic change in the boundary layer in the symbiotic recurrent nova T Coronae Borealis. Astronomy and Astrophysics , 619 , Article A61. 10.1051/0004-6361/201833747. Green open access

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Abstract

A sudden increase in the rate at which material reaches the most internal part of an accretion disk, i.e., the boundary layer, can change its structure dramatically. We have witnessed such a change for the first time in the symbiotic recurrent nova T CrB. Our analysis of XMM-Newton, Swift Burst Alert Telescope (BAT)/X-Ray Telescope (XRT)/UltraViolet Optical Telescope (UVOT), and the American Association of Variable Stars Observers (AAVSO) V- and B-band data indicates that during an optical brightening event that started in early 2014 (ΔV ≈ 1.5) the following occurred: (i) the hard X-ray emission as seen with BAT almost vanished; (ii) the XRT X-ray flux decreased significantly, while the optical flux remained high; (iii) the UV flux increased by at least a factor of 40 over the quiescent value; and (iv) the X-ray spectrum became much softer and a bright, new blackbody-like component appeared. We suggest that the optical brightening event, which could be a similar event to that observed about 8 years before the most recent thermonuclear outburst in 1946, is due to a disk instability.

Type: Article
Title: Dramatic change in the boundary layer in the symbiotic recurrent nova T Coronae Borealis
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1051/0004-6361/201833747
Publisher version: http://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201833747
Language: English
Additional information: This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions.
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences > Dept of Space and Climate Physics
URI: https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10062686
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