A fast spinning magnetic white dwarf in the double degenerate, super-Chandrasekhar system NLTT 12758
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2017 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stw3149 |
| Keywords | binaries: close; stars: individual: NLTT 12758; stars: magnetic field; white dwarfs |
| Description | We present an analysis of the close double degenerate NLTT 12758, which is comprised of a magnetic white dwarf with a field of about 3.1 MG and an apparently non-magnetic white dwarf. We measured an orbital period of 1.154 d and found that the magnetic white dwarf is spinning around its axis with a period of 23 min. An analysis of the atmospheric parameters has revealed that the cooling ages of the two white dwarfs are comparable, suggesting that they formed within a short period of time from each other. Our modelling indicates that the non-magnetic white dwarf is more massive (M = 0.83M(circle dot)) than its magnetic companion (M = 0.69M(circle dot)) and that the total mass of the system is higher than the Chandrasekhar mass. Although the stars will not come into contact over a Hubble time, when they do come into contact, dynamically unstable mass transfer will take place leading to either an accretion induced collapse into a rapidly spinning neutron star or a Type Ia supernova. |
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