We plan to observe V471 Tau,an eclipsing 12.5h period precontact cataclysmicbinary in order to study evidence for accretion via stellar wind from the activeK2V secondary. HST UV spectra have established that the white dwarf surfaceshows inhomogenities of silicon, which could be due to magnetically funnelledaccretion In this programme we plan to study the spin phase resolved X-rayspectrum of the WD together with simultaneous X-ray & UV spin lightcurves inorder to model the variation and thus check the stellar wind accretionhypothesis. The eclipsing nature of the system allows us to fully separate X-rayemission from the WD and the K star. This enables us to model emission from eachsource separately and provides extra constraints on the location of the WD magnetic poles.
Instrument
EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2
Temporal Coverage
2004-08-01T06:51:36Z/2004-08-01T23:47:00Z
Version
17.56_20190403_1200
Mission Description
The European Space Agencys (ESA) X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton) was launched by an Ariane 504 on December 10th 1999. XMM-Newton is ESAs second cornerstone of the Horizon 2000 Science Programme. It carries 3 high throughput X-ray telescopes with an unprecedented effective area, and an optical monitor, the first flown on a X-ray observatory. The large collecting area and ability to make long uninterrupted exposures provide highly sensitive observations. Since Earths atmosphere blocks out all X-rays, only a telescope in space can detect and study celestial X-ray sources. The XMM-Newton mission is helping scientists to solve a number of cosmic mysteries, ranging from the enigmatic black holes to the origins of the Universe itself. Observing time on XMM-Newton is being made available to the scientific community, applying for observational periods on a competitive basis.
European Space Agency, Dr PASI HAKALA, 2005, 'V471 TAU - ECLIPSING LABORATORY FOR WIND ACCRETION AND STELLAR ACTIVITY STUDIES', 17.56_20190403_1200, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-07c7769
