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Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons

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Astrophysics and Astronomy

Aerospace, Physics, and Space Science Faculty Publications

Series

2012

White Dwarfs

Articles 1 - 2 of 2

Full-Text Articles in Physical Sciences and Mathematics

Empirical Determination Of Convection Parameters In White Dwarfs. I. Whole Earth Telescope Observations Of Ec14012-1446, Judith L. Provençal, Matt A. Wood, Stéphane Vennes, Péter Németh Jun 2012

Empirical Determination Of Convection Parameters In White Dwarfs. I. Whole Earth Telescope Observations Of Ec14012-1446, Judith L. Provençal, Matt A. Wood, Stéphane Vennes, Péter Németh

Aerospace, Physics, and Space Science Faculty Publications

We report on an analysis of 308.3 hr of high-speed photometry targeting the pulsating DA white dwarf EC14012-1446. The data were acquired with the Whole Earth Telescope during the 2008 international observing run XCOV26. The Fourier transform of the light curve contains 19 independent frequencies and numerous combination frequencies. The dominant peaks are 1633.907, 1887.404, and 2504.897μHz. Our analysis of the combination amplitudes reveals that the parent frequencies are consistent with modes of spherical degree l = 1. The combination amplitudes also provide m identifications for the largest amplitude parent frequencies. Our seismology analysis, which includes 2004–2007 archival data, confirms …


Observational Constraints On The Degenerate Mass-Radius Relation, Jay B. Holberg, Terry D. Oswalt, M A. Barstow Mar 2012

Observational Constraints On The Degenerate Mass-Radius Relation, Jay B. Holberg, Terry D. Oswalt, M A. Barstow

Aerospace, Physics, and Space Science Faculty Publications

The white dwarf mass-radius relationship is fundamental to modern astrophysics. It is central to routine estimation of DA white dwarf masses derived from spectroscopic temperatures and gravities. It is also the basis for observational determinations of the white dwarf initial-final-mass relation. Nevertheless, definitive and detailed observational confirmations of the mass-radius relation (MRR) remain elusive owing to a lack of sufficiently accurate white dwarf masses and radii. Current best estimates of masses and radii allow only broad conclusions about the expected inverse relation between masses and radii in degenerate stars. In this paper, we examine a restricted set of 12 DA …