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Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Constraining The Surface Inhomogeneity And Settling Times Of Metals On Accreting White Dwarfs, Michael H. Montgomery, S.E. Thompson, Ted Von Hippel Aug 2008

Constraining The Surface Inhomogeneity And Settling Times Of Metals On Accreting White Dwarfs, Michael H. Montgomery, S.E. Thompson, Ted Von Hippel

Publications

Due to the short settling times of metals in DA white dwarf atmospheres, any white dwarfs with photospheric metals must be actively accreting. It is therefore natural to expect that the metals may not be deposited uniformly on the surface of the star. We present calculations showing how the temperature variations associated with white dwarf pulsations lead to an observable diagnostic of the surface metal distribution, and we show what constraints current data sets are able to provide. We also investigate the effect that time-variable accretion has on the metal abundances of different species, and we show how this can …


The First Mid-Infrared Spectra Of Cool White Dwarfs, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. May 2008

The First Mid-Infrared Spectra Of Cool White Dwarfs, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We present the first mid-infrared spectra of two cool white dwarfs obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope. We also present 3.5–8 μ m photometry for 19 cool white dwarfs with 5000 K ≤Teff ≤ 9000 K. We perform a detailed model atmosphere analysis of these white dwarfs by fitting their UBVRIJHK and Spitzer photometry with state-of-the-art model atmospheres, and demonstrate that the optical and infrared spectral energy distributions of cool white dwarfs are well reproduced by our grid of models. Our mid-infrared photometry and 7.5-14.5 μm spectrum of WD 0018–267 are consistent with a Teff = 5720 …


A New Look At The Local White Dwarf Population, J. B. Holberg, E. M. Sion, Terry D. Oswalt, G. P. Mccook, S. Foran, John P. Subasavage Apr 2008

A New Look At The Local White Dwarf Population, J. B. Holberg, E. M. Sion, Terry D. Oswalt, G. P. Mccook, S. Foran, John P. Subasavage

Publications

We have conducted a detailed new survey of the local population of white dwarfs lying within 20 pc of the Sun. A new revised catalog of local white dwarfs containing 122 entries (126 individual degenerate stars) is presented. This list contains 27 white dwarfs not included in a previous list from 2002, as well as new and recently published trigonometric parallaxes. In several cases new members of the local white dwarf population have come to light through accurate photometric distance estimates. In addition, a suspected new double degenerate system (WD 0423+120) has been identified. The 20 pc sample is currently …


White Dwarf Luminosity And Mass Functions From Sloan Digital Sky Survey Spectra, Steven Degennaro, Ted Von Hippel, D. E. Winget, S. O. Kepler, Atsuko Nitta, Detlev Koester, Leandro Althaus Jan 2008

White Dwarf Luminosity And Mass Functions From Sloan Digital Sky Survey Spectra, Steven Degennaro, Ted Von Hippel, D. E. Winget, S. O. Kepler, Atsuko Nitta, Detlev Koester, Leandro Althaus

Publications

We present the first phase in our ongoing work to use Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) data to create separate white dwarf (WD) luminosity functions (LFs) for two or more different mass ranges. In this paper, we determine the completeness of the SDSS spectroscopic WD sample by comparing a proper-motion selected sample of WDs from SDSS imaging data with a large catalog of spectroscopically determined WDs. We derive a selection probability as a function of a single color (g − i) and apparent magnitude (g) that covers the range −1.0 < g − i < 0.2 and 15 < g < 19.5. We address the observed upturn in log g for WDs with Teff 12,000 K and offer arguments that the problem is limited to the line profiles and is not present in the continuum. We offer an empirical method of removing the upturn, recovering a reasonable mass function for WDs with Teff < 12,000 K. Finally we present a WD LF with nearly an order of magnitude (3358) more spectroscopically confirmed WDs than any previous work.


A Spitzer White Dwarf Infrared Survey, F. Mullally, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Jul 2007

A Spitzer White Dwarf Infrared Survey, F. Mullally, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We present mid-infrared photometry of 124 white dwarf stars with the Spitzer Space Telescope. Objects were observed simultaneously at 4.5 and 8.0 μm with sensitivities better than 0.1 mJy. This data set can be used to test models of white dwarf atmospheres in a new wavelength regime, as well as to search for planetary companions and debris disks.


The New Class Of Dusty Daz White Dwarfs, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Jun 2007

The New Class Of Dusty Daz White Dwarfs, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

Our mid-infrared survey of 124 white dwarfs with the Spitzer Space Telescope and the IRAC imager has revealed an infrared excess associated with the white dwarf WD 2115-560 naturally explained by circumstellar dust. This object is the fourth white dwarf observed to have circumstellar dust. All four are DAZ white dwarfs, i.e., they have both photospheric Balmer lines and photospheric metal lines. We discuss these four objects as a class, which we abbreviate "DAZd," where the "d" stands for "dust." Using an optically thick, geometrically thin disk model analogous to Saturn's rings, we find that the inner disk edges are …


Lp133-373 A New Chromospherically Active Eclipsing Dme Binary With A Distant, Cool White Dwarf Companion, T. R. Vaccaro, T. D. Oswalt, M. Rudkin, Adela Kawka, Stephane Vennes, Et Al. Jun 2007

Lp133-373 A New Chromospherically Active Eclipsing Dme Binary With A Distant, Cool White Dwarf Companion, T. R. Vaccaro, T. D. Oswalt, M. Rudkin, Adela Kawka, Stephane Vennes, Et Al.

Publications

We report the discovery of the partially eclipsing binary LP 133-373. Nearly identical eclipses along with observed photometric colors and spectroscopy indicate that it is a pair of chromospherically active dM4 stars in a circular 1.6 day orbit. Light and velocity curve modeling to our differential photometry and velocity data show that each star has a mass and radius of 0.340 ± 0.014 M☉ and 0.33 ± 0.02 R☉. The binary is itself part of a common proper motion pair with LP 133-374, a cool DC or possible DA white dwarf with a mass of 0.49-0.82 M☉, …


Lp 133-373: A New Chromospherically Active Eclipsing Dme Binary With A Distant, Cool White Dwarf Companion, T. R. Vaccaro, M. Rudkin, A. Kawka, S. Vennes, Terry D. Oswalt, Et Al. Jun 2007

Lp 133-373: A New Chromospherically Active Eclipsing Dme Binary With A Distant, Cool White Dwarf Companion, T. R. Vaccaro, M. Rudkin, A. Kawka, S. Vennes, Terry D. Oswalt, Et Al.

Publications

We report the discovery of the partially eclipsing binary LP 133-373. Nearly identical eclipses along with observed photometric colors and spectroscopy indicate that it is a pair of chromospherically active dM4 stars in a circular 1.6 day orbit. Light and velocity curve modeling to our differential photometry and velocity data show that each star has a mass and radius of 0:340 ± 0:014 Mand 0:33 ± 0:02 R. The binary is itself part of a common proper motion pair with LP 133-374, a cool DC or possible DA white dwarf with a mass of 0.49Y0.82 M …


Discovery Of Photospheric Calcium Line-Strength Variations In The Dazd White Dwarf G29-38, Ted Von Hippel, Susan E. Thompson May 2007

Discovery Of Photospheric Calcium Line-Strength Variations In The Dazd White Dwarf G29-38, Ted Von Hippel, Susan E. Thompson

Publications

Metals in the photospheres of white dwarfs with Teff between 12,000 and 25,000 K should gravitationally settle out of these atmospheres in 1 ̶ 2 weeks. Temporal variations in the line strengths of these metals could provide a direct measurement of episodic metal accretion. Using archival VLT and Keck spectroscopy, we find evidence that the DAZd white dwarf G29-38 shows significant changes in its Ca П K line strength. At the two best-observed epochs, we find that the Ca line equivalent width (EW) = 165 ̶ 4 mǺ (in 1996.885) and 280 ± 8 mǺ (in 1999.653), which is …


New Techniques To Determine Ages Of Open Clusters Using White Dwarfs, E. J. Jeffery, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Mar 2007

New Techniques To Determine Ages Of Open Clusters Using White Dwarfs, E. J. Jeffery, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

Currently there are two main techniques for independently determining the ages of stellar populations: main-sequence evolution theory (via cluster isochrones) and white dwarf cooling theory. Open clusters provide the ideal environment for the calibration of these two clocks. Because current techniques to derive cluster ages from white dwarfs are observationally challenging, we discuss the feasibility of determining white dwarf ages from the brighter white dwarfs alone. This would eliminate the requirement of observing the coolest (i.e., faintest) white dwarfs. We discuss our method for testing this new idea, as well as the required photometric precision and prior constraints on metallicity, …


Debris Disks Around White Dwarfs: The Daz Connection, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Jul 2006

Debris Disks Around White Dwarfs: The Daz Connection, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We present near-infrared spectroscopic observations of 20 previously known DAZ white dwarfs obtained at the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility. Two of these white dwarfs (G29-38 and GD 362) are known to display significant K-band excesses due to circumstellar debris disks. Here we report the discovery of excess K-band radiation from another DAZ white dwarf WD0408041 (GD56). Using spectroscopic observations, we show that the excess radiation cannot be explained by a stellar or substellar companion, and is likely to be caused by a warm debris disk. Our observations strengthen the connection between the debris disk phenomena and the observed …


Inverting Color-Magnitude Diagrams To Access Precise Star Cluster Parameters: A Bayesian Approach, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Jul 2006

Inverting Color-Magnitude Diagrams To Access Precise Star Cluster Parameters: A Bayesian Approach, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We demonstrate a new Bayesian technique to invert color-magnitude diagrams of main-sequence and white dwarf stars to reveal the underlying cluster properties of age, distance, metallicity, and line-of-sight absorption, as well as individual stellar masses. The advantages our technique has over traditional analyses of color-magnitude diagrams are objectivity, precision, and explicit dependence on prior knowledge of cluster parameters. Within the confines of a given set of often-used models of stellar evolution, a single mapping of initial to final masses, and white dwarf cooling, and assuming photometric errors that one could reasonably achieve with the Hubble Space Telescope, our technique …


Lp 400-22, A Very Low Mass And High-Velocity White Dwarf, Adela Kawka, Stephane Vennes, Terry D. Oswalt, J. Allyn Smith, Nicole M. Silvestri Jun 2006

Lp 400-22, A Very Low Mass And High-Velocity White Dwarf, Adela Kawka, Stephane Vennes, Terry D. Oswalt, J. Allyn Smith, Nicole M. Silvestri

Publications

We report the identification of LP 400-22 (WD 2234 + 222) as a very low mass and high-velocity white dwarf. The ultraviolet GALEX and optical photometric colors and a spectral line analysis of LP 400-22 show this star to have an effective temperature of 11,080 ± 140 K and a surface gravity of log g p 6.32 ± 0.08. Therefore, this is a helium-core white dwarf with a mass of 0.17 M. The tangential velocity of this white dwarf is 414 ± 43 km s-1, making it one of the fastest moving white dwarfs known. We …


The Mystery Deepens: Spitzer Observations Of Cool White Dwarfs, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. May 2006

The Mystery Deepens: Spitzer Observations Of Cool White Dwarfs, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We present 4.5 and 8 µm photometric observations of 18 cool white dwarfs obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope. Our observations demonstrate that four white dwarfs with Teᶠᶠ < 6000 K show slightly depressed mid-infrared fluxes relative to white dwarf models. In addition, another white dwarf with a peculiar optical and near-infrared spectral energy distribution (LHS 1126) is found to display significant flux deficits in Spitzer observations. These mid-infrared flux deficits are not predicted by the current white dwarf models including collision-induced absorption due to molecular hydrogen. We postulate that either the collision-induced absorption calculations are incomplete or there are other unrecognized physical processes occurring in cool white dwarf atmospheres. The spectral energy distribution of LHS 1126 surprisingly fits a Rayleigh-Jeans spectrum in the infrared, mimicking a hot white dwarf with effective temperature well in excess of 105 K. This implies that the source of this flux deficit is probably not molecular absorption but some other process.


Cool White Dwarfs In The Sloan Digital Sky Survey, Mukremin Kilic, Jeffrey A. Munn, Hugh C. Harris, James W. Liebert, Ted Von Hippel, Kurtis A. Williams, Travis S. Metcalfe, D. E. Winget, Stephen E. Levine Jan 2006

Cool White Dwarfs In The Sloan Digital Sky Survey, Mukremin Kilic, Jeffrey A. Munn, Hugh C. Harris, James W. Liebert, Ted Von Hippel, Kurtis A. Williams, Travis S. Metcalfe, D. E. Winget, Stephen E. Levine

Publications

A reduced proper motion diagram utilizing Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) photometry and astrometry and USNO-B plate astrometry is used to separate cool white dwarf candidates from metal-weak, high-velocity, mainsequence Population II stars (subdwarfs) in the SDSS Data Release 2 imaging area. Follow-up spectroscopy using the Hobby-Eberly Telescope, the MMT, and the McDonald 2.7 m telescope is used to demonstrate that the white dwarf and subdwarf loci separate cleanly in the reduced proper motion diagram and that the contamination by subdwarfs is small near the cool white dwarf locus. This enables large, statistically complete samples of white dwarfs, particularly the …


The White Dwarf Luminosity Function From Sloan Digital Sky Survey Imaging Data, Hugh C. Harris, Jeffrey A. Munn, Mukremin Kilic, James W. Liebert, Kurtis A. Williams, Ted Von Hippel, Stephen E. Levine, David G. Monet, Daniel J. Eisenstein, S. J. Kleinman, T. S. Metcalfe, Atsuko Nikka, D. E. Winget, J. Brinkmann, Masataka Fukugita, G. R. Knapp, Robert H. Lupton, J. Allyn Smith, Donald P. Schneider Jan 2006

The White Dwarf Luminosity Function From Sloan Digital Sky Survey Imaging Data, Hugh C. Harris, Jeffrey A. Munn, Mukremin Kilic, James W. Liebert, Kurtis A. Williams, Ted Von Hippel, Stephen E. Levine, David G. Monet, Daniel J. Eisenstein, S. J. Kleinman, T. S. Metcalfe, Atsuko Nikka, D. E. Winget, J. Brinkmann, Masataka Fukugita, G. R. Knapp, Robert H. Lupton, J. Allyn Smith, Donald P. Schneider

Publications

A sample of white dwarfs is selected from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) Data Release 3 using their reduced proper motions, based on improved proper motions from combined SDSS and USNO-B data. Numerous SDSS and follow-up spectra (Kilic and coworkers) are used to quantify completeness and contamination of the sample; kinematicsmodels are used to understand and correct for velocity-dependent selection biases.A luminosity function is constructed covering the range 7 < Mbol < 16, and its sensitivity to various assumptions and selection limits is discussed. The white dwarf luminosity function based on 6000 stars is remarkably smooth and rises nearly monotonically to Mbol=15.3. It then drops abruptly, although the small number of low-luminosity stars in the sample and their unknown atmospheric composition prevent quantitative conclusions about this decline. Stars …


The Dust Cloud Around The White Dwarf G29-38, William T. Reach, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Dec 2005

The Dust Cloud Around The White Dwarf G29-38, William T. Reach, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We present new observations of the white dwarf G29-38 with the camera (4.5 and 8 μm), photometer (24 μm), and spectrograph (5.5-14 μm) of the Spitzer Space Telescope. This star has an exceptionally large infrared excess, amounting to 3% of the bolometric luminosity. The spectral energy distribution (SED) has a continuum peak around 4.5 μm and a 9-11 μm emission feature 1.25 times brighter than the continuum. A mixture of amorphous olivine and a small amount of forsterite in an emitting region 1-5 R☉ from the star can reproduce the shape of the 9-11 μm feature. The SED …


Faint Blue Objects In The Hubble Deep Field–South Revealed: White Dwarfs, Subdwarfs, And Quasars, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Nov 2005

Faint Blue Objects In The Hubble Deep Field–South Revealed: White Dwarfs, Subdwarfs, And Quasars, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We explore the nature of the faint blue objects in the Hubble Deep Field–South. We have derived proper motions for the point sources in the Hubble Deep Field–South using a 3 yr baseline. Combining our proper-motion measurements with spectral energy distribution fitting enabled us to identify four quasars and 42 stars, including three white dwarf candidates. Two of these white dwarf candidates, HDF-S 1444 and 895, are found to display significant proper motion, 21:1±7:9 and 34:9 ± 8:0 mas yr -1, and are consistent with being thick-disk or halo white dwarfs located at ̴2 kpc. The other faint …


Excess Infrared Radiation From The Massive Daz White Dwarf Gd 362: A Debris Disk?, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Oct 2005

Excess Infrared Radiation From The Massive Daz White Dwarf Gd 362: A Debris Disk?, Mukremin Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We report the discovery of excess K-band radiation from the massive DAZ white dwarf star GD 362. Combining infrared photometric and spectroscopic observations, we show that the excess radiation cannot be explained by a stellar or substellar companion, and is likely to be caused by a debris disk. This would be only the second such system known, discovered 18 years after G29-38, the only single white dwarf currently known to be orbited by circumstellar dust. Both of these systems favor a model with accretion from a surrounding debris disk to explain the metal abundances observed in DAZ white dwarfs. …


Deep Photometry Of The Globular Cluster M5: Distance Estimates From White Dwarf And Main-Sequence Stars, Andrew C. Layden, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Oct 2005

Deep Photometry Of The Globular Cluster M5: Distance Estimates From White Dwarf And Main-Sequence Stars, Andrew C. Layden, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We present deep VI photometry of stars in the globular cluster M5 (NGC 5904) based on images taken with the Hubble Space Telescope. The resulting color-magnitude diagram reaches below V ≈27 mag, revealing the upper 2–3 mag of the white dwarf cooling sequence and main-sequence stars 8 mag and more below the turnoff. We fit the main sequence to subdwarfs of known parallax to obtain a true distance modulus of (m ̶ M )0 = 14:45 ± 0:11 mag. A second distance estimate based on fitting the cluster white dwarf sequence to field white dwarfs with known parallax …


From Young And Hot To Old And Cold: Comparing White Dwarf Cooling Theory To Main-Sequence Stellar Evolution In Open Clusters, Ted Von Hippel Mar 2005

From Young And Hot To Old And Cold: Comparing White Dwarf Cooling Theory To Main-Sequence Stellar Evolution In Open Clusters, Ted Von Hippel

Publications

I explore the current ability of both white dwarf cooling theory and main-sequence stellar evolution theory to accurately determine stellar population ages by comparing ages derived using both techniques for open clusters ranging from 0.1 to 4 Gyr. I find good agreement between white dwarf and main-sequence evolutionary ages over the entire age range currently available for study. I also find that directly comparing main-sequence turnoff ages to white dwarf ages is only weakly sensitive to realistic levels of errors in cluster distance, metallicity, and reddening. Additional detailed comparisons between white dwarf and main-sequence ages have tremendous potential to refine …


The Initial-Final Mass Relationship: Spectroscopy Of White Dwarfs In Ngc 2099 (M37), Jasonjot Singh Kalirai, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Dec 2004

The Initial-Final Mass Relationship: Spectroscopy Of White Dwarfs In Ngc 2099 (M37), Jasonjot Singh Kalirai, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We present new observations of very faint white dwarfs (WDs) in the rich open star cluster NGC 2099 (M37). Following deep, wide-field imaging of the cluster using the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, we have now obtained spectroscopic observations of candidate WDs using both the Gemini Multi-Object Spectrograph on Gemini North and the Low-Resolution Imaging Spectrometer on Keck. Of our 24 WD candidates (all fainter than V = 22.4), 21 are spectroscopically confirmed to be bona fide WDs, four or five of which are most likely field objects. Fitting 18 of the 21 WD spectra with model atmospheres, we find that most WDs …


The White Dwarf Luminosity Function: The Shape Of Things To Come, Ted Von Hippel, M. Kilie, J. Munn, K. Williams, J. Libert, D. E. Winget, T. S. Metcalfe, Et Al. Oct 2004

The White Dwarf Luminosity Function: The Shape Of Things To Come, Ted Von Hippel, M. Kilie, J. Munn, K. Williams, J. Libert, D. E. Winget, T. S. Metcalfe, Et Al.

Publications

We describe a new survey for cool white dwarfs that supplements Sloan Digital Sky Survey photometry with USNO proper motions and followup spectroscopy. To date we have discovered and spectroscopically confirmed 80 new moderate temperature and cool white dwarfs. We have also found a handful of high-velocity white dwarfs and we expect a sizable fraction of these to be thick disk or possibly halo objects. Our survey is designed to find 104 new white dwarfs, although only 60 will be among the faintest white dwarfs (MV 16), where most of the age-sensitivity resides. We discuss an extension of our survey …


Photometric Identification Of Cool White Dwarfs, M. Kilic, D. E. Winget, Ted Von Hippel, C. F. Claver Oct 2004

Photometric Identification Of Cool White Dwarfs, M. Kilic, D. E. Winget, Ted Von Hippel, C. F. Claver

Publications

We investigate the use of a narrowband DDO51 filter for photometric identification of cool white dwarfs. We report photometric observations of 30 known cool white dwarfs with temperatures ranging from 10,000 K down to very cool temperatures (3500 K). Follow-up spectroscopic observations of a sample of objects selected using this filter and our photometric observations show that DDO51 filter photometry can help select cool white dwarf candidates for follow-up multiobject spectroscopy by rejecting 65% of main-sequence stars with the same broadband colors as the cool white dwarfs. This technique is not selective enough to efficiently feed single-object spectrographs. We present …


Redefining The Empirical Zz Ceti Instability Strip, Anjum S. Mukadam, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Sep 2004

Redefining The Empirical Zz Ceti Instability Strip, Anjum S. Mukadam, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We use the new ZZ Ceti stars (hydrogen-atmosphere white dwarf variables; DAVs) discovered within the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (Mukadam et al. 2004) to redefine the empirical ZZ Ceti instability strip. This is the first time since the discovery of white dwarf variables in 1968 that we have a homogeneous set of spectra acquired using the same instrument on the same telescope, and with consistent data reductions, for a statistically significant sample of ZZ Ceti stars. The homogeneity of the spectra reduces the scatter in the spectroscopic temperatures, and we find a narrow instability strip of width ~950 K, from …


Proper Motion Objects In The Hubble Deep Field, M. Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Jul 2004

Proper Motion Objects In The Hubble Deep Field, M. Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

Using the deepest and finest resolution images of the universe acquired with the Hubble Space Telescope and a similar image taken 7 yr later for the Great Observatories Origins Deep Survey, we have derived proper motions for the point sources in the Hubble Deep Field–North. Two faint blue objects, HDF 2234 and HDF 3072, are found to display significant proper motion, 10:0 ± 2:5 and 15:5 ± 3:8 mas yr¯1. Photometric distances and tangential velocities for these stars are consistent with disk white dwarfs located at ~500 pc. The faint blue objects analyzed by Ibata et al. and Mendez & …


Thirty-Five New Pulsating Da White Dwarf Stars, Anjum S. Mukadam, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al. Jun 2004

Thirty-Five New Pulsating Da White Dwarf Stars, Anjum S. Mukadam, Ted Von Hippel, Et Al.

Publications

We present 35 new pulsating DA (hydrogen atmosphere) white dwarf stars discovered from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and the Hamburg Quasar Survey (HQS). We have acquired high-speed time series photometry of preselected DA white dwarfs with a prime focus CCD photometer on the 2.1 m telescope at McDonald Observatory over 15 months. We selected these stars on the basis of prior photometric and spectroscopic observations by the SDSS and HQS. For the homogeneous SDSS sample, we achieve a success rate of 80% for finding new variables at a detection threshold of 0.1%-0.3%. With 35 newly discovered DA variable …


Spectroscopic And Photometric Analysis Of Hs 1136+6646: A Hot Young Dao+K7 V Post-Common-Envelope, Pre-Cataclysmic Variable Binary, D. K. Sing, Terry D. Oswalt, J. B. Holberg, M. R. Burleigh, S. A. Good, Et Al. May 2004

Spectroscopic And Photometric Analysis Of Hs 1136+6646: A Hot Young Dao+K7 V Post-Common-Envelope, Pre-Cataclysmic Variable Binary, D. K. Sing, Terry D. Oswalt, J. B. Holberg, M. R. Burleigh, S. A. Good, Et Al.

Publications

Extensive photometric and spectroscopic observations have been obtained for HS 1136+6646. The observations reveal a newly formed post–common-envelope binary system containing a hot ~DAO.5 primary and a highly irradiated secondary. HS 1136+6646 is the most extreme example yet of a class of short-period hot H-rich white dwarfs with K–M companion systems such as V471 Tau and Feige 24. HS 1136+6646 is a double-line spectroscopic binary showing emission lines of H i, He ii, C ii, Ca ii, and Mg ii, due in part to irradiation of the K7 V secondary by the hot white dwarf. Echelle spectra reveal the hydrogen …


Constraining The Evolution Of Zz Ceti, Anjum S. Mukadam, S. O. Kepler, D. E. Nather, M. Kilic, F. Mullally, T. Von Hippel, S. J. Kleinman, A. Nitta, J. A. Guzik, P. A. Bradley, J. Matthews, K. Sekiguchi, D. J. Sullivan, T. Sullivan, R. R. Shobbrook, P. Birch, X. J. Jiang, D. W. Xu, S. Joshi, B. N. Ashoka, P. Ibbetson, E. Leibowitz, E. O. Ofek, E. G. Meištas, R. Janulis, R. D. Ališauskas, R. Kalytis, G. Handler, D. Kilkenny, D. O'Donoghue, D. W. Kurtz, M. Müller, P. Moskalik, W. Ogloza, S. Zola, J. Krzesiński, F. Johnannessen, J. M. Gonzalez-Perez, J. E. Solheim, R. Silvotti, S. Bernabei, G. Vauclair, N. Dolez, J. N. Fu, M. Chevreton, M. Manteiga, O. Suárez, A. Ulla, M. S. Cunha, T. S. Metcalfe, A. Kanaan, L. Fraga, A. F. M. Costa, O. Giovannini, G. Fontaine, P. Bergeron, M. S. O'Brien, D. Sanwal, M. A. Wood, T. J. Ahrens, N. Silvestri, E. W. Klumpe, S. D. Kawaler, R. Riddle, M. D. Reed, T. K. Watson Sep 2003

Constraining The Evolution Of Zz Ceti, Anjum S. Mukadam, S. O. Kepler, D. E. Nather, M. Kilic, F. Mullally, T. Von Hippel, S. J. Kleinman, A. Nitta, J. A. Guzik, P. A. Bradley, J. Matthews, K. Sekiguchi, D. J. Sullivan, T. Sullivan, R. R. Shobbrook, P. Birch, X. J. Jiang, D. W. Xu, S. Joshi, B. N. Ashoka, P. Ibbetson, E. Leibowitz, E. O. Ofek, E. G. Meištas, R. Janulis, R. D. Ališauskas, R. Kalytis, G. Handler, D. Kilkenny, D. O'Donoghue, D. W. Kurtz, M. Müller, P. Moskalik, W. Ogloza, S. Zola, J. Krzesiński, F. Johnannessen, J. M. Gonzalez-Perez, J. E. Solheim, R. Silvotti, S. Bernabei, G. Vauclair, N. Dolez, J. N. Fu, M. Chevreton, M. Manteiga, O. Suárez, A. Ulla, M. S. Cunha, T. S. Metcalfe, A. Kanaan, L. Fraga, A. F. M. Costa, O. Giovannini, G. Fontaine, P. Bergeron, M. S. O'Brien, D. Sanwal, M. A. Wood, T. J. Ahrens, N. Silvestri, E. W. Klumpe, S. D. Kawaler, R. Riddle, M. D. Reed, T. K. Watson

Publications

We report our analysis of the stability of pulsation periods in the DAV star (pulsating hydrogen atmosphere white dwarf) ZZ Ceti, also called R548. On the basis of observations that span 31 years, we conclude that the period 213.13 s observed in ZZ Ceti drifts at a rate dP/dt (5:5 ± 1:9) x 10-15 s s-1, after correcting for proper motion. Our results are consistent with previous values for this mode and an improvement over them because of the larger time base. The characteristic stability timescale implied for the pulsation period is …


Search For Oxygen In Cool Dq White Dwarf Atmospheres, M. Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, D. E. Winget, D. F. Lester, D. Saumon Sep 2002

Search For Oxygen In Cool Dq White Dwarf Atmospheres, M. Kilic, Ted Von Hippel, D. E. Winget, D. F. Lester, D. Saumon

Publications

The existence of carbon in cool He white dwarf (WD) atmospheres has been known for a relatively long time[5]. The presence of carbon in these atmospheres is explained by convective dredge up of interior carbon [6]. Pelletier et al. (1986) presented the first detailed calculations of this process and showed that carbon diffuses upwards from the core into the base of the He-rich envelope where it can be dredged up by a surface convection zone. As the temperature of the star decreases, more carbon diffuses upward, and the base of convection zone moves deeper into the star, further enriching the …