Abstract
White dwarf stars harbor yet more surprises. Consider the Sirius system, for example. Sirius A, with a mass of 2 M Sun, is an ordinary, hydrogen-burning main sequence star. Sirius B, with a mass of 1 M Sun, is a white dwarf. It has already completed hydrogen- and helium-burning and has no remaining nuclear energy sources. However, stellar evolution calculations tell us that stars with higher masses consume their nuclear fuels faster than those with lower masses. Thus, Sirius B must once have been more massive than Sirius A, and sometime during the course of stellar evolution it must have lost much of its original mass. Astronomers think that most or all of this mass was ejected completely from the Sirius system.
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Notes
- 1.
Holberg (2007), p. 215.
- 2.
See, for example, Kopal (1959).
- 3.
This model was first developed by French astronomer and mathematician Èdouard A. Roche (1820–1883) and has since been used extensively in studies of close binary systems.
- 4.
Kippenhahn, R., and Weigert, A. 1967, Zeitschrift für Astrophysik, 65, 251, “Entwicklung in engen Doppelsternsystemen. I. Massenaustausch vor und nach Beendigung des zentralen Wasserstoff-Brennens.”
- 5.
Webbink, R. F. 1989, American Scientist, 77, 248, “Cataclysmic Variable Stars.”
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Iben, I., Jr. 1991, Astrophys. J. Suppl., 76, 55, “Single and Binary Star Evolution.”
- 7.
Downes, R., et al. 2001, Publ. Astron. Soc. Pacific, 113, 764, “A Catalog and Atlas of Cataclysmic Variables.”
- 8.
Hansen and Kawaler (1994), pp. 83 ff.
- 9.
Ibid., p. 84.
- 10.
Osaki, Y. 1974, Pub. Astron. Soc. Japan, 26, 429, “An Accretion Model for the Outbursts of U Geminorum.”
- 11.
Solheim, J.-E. 2010, Pub. Astron. Soc. Pacific, 122, 1133, “AMCVn Stars: Status and Challenges.”
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Faulkner, J., Flannery, B. P., and Warner, B. 1972, Astrophys. J., 175, L79, “Ultrashort-Period Binaries. I. HZ 29 (=AM C Vn): A Double-White dwarf Semidetached Protocataclysmic Nova?”
- 13.
Kraft, R. P. 1962, Astrophys. J., 135, 408, “Binary Stars Among Cataclysmic Variables. I. U Geminorum Stars (Dwarf Novae).”
- 14.
Hulse, R. A., and Taylor, J. H. 1975, Astrophys. J., 195, L51, “Discovery of a Pulsar in a Binary System.”
- 15.
As of 2005, 24 double white dwarf binaries have been discovered.
- 16.
Nelemans, G., et al. 2005, Astron. & Astrophys., 440, 1087, “Binaries Discovered by the SPY Project. IV. Five Single-Lined DA Double White Dwarfs.”
- 17.
Webbink, R. F. 1984, Astrophys. J., 277, 355, “Double White Dwarfs as Progenitors of R Coronae Borealis Stars and Type I Supernovae.”
- 18.
Iben, I., Jr., and Tutukov, A. 1986, Astrophys. J., 311, 753, “On the Number-Mass Distribution of Degenerate Dwarfs Produced by Interacting Binaries and Evidence for Mergers of Low-Mass Helium White Dwarfs.”
- 19.
Webbink, R. F. 1984, op. cit.
- 20.
Iben, I, Jr., and Tutukov, A. 1984, Astrophys. J. Suppl., 54, 335, “Supernovae of Type I as End Products of the Evolution of Binaries with Components of Moderate Initial Mass (M not Greater than about 9 Solar Masses).”
- 21.
Webbink, R. F. 1984, op. cit.
- 22.
Iben, I., Jr. 1986, Astrophys. J., 304, 201, “On the Evolution of Binary Components Which First Fill Their Roche Lobes After the Exhaustion of Central Helium.”
References
Hansen, CJ, Kawaler, SD: Stellar Interiors. New York, Springer-Verlag (1994)
Holberg, JB: Sirius: Brightest Diamond in the Night Sky. Springer, New York (2007)
Kopal, Z: Close Binary Systems. London, Chapman Hall, Ltd. (1959)
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Van Horn, H.M. (2015). Odd Couples. In: Unlocking the Secrets of White Dwarf Stars. Astronomers' Universe. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-09369-7_20
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