HD 109962, a bright F2 star and an ellipsoidal variable, is arecently-recognized erupting variable star. Fairly regular outbursts over thepast 5 years suggest it is a dwarf nova. Spectra during the Jan 2006 outburstrevealed strong He II 4686 emission, and the residual spectrum (outburst - postoutburst) is that of an accretion disk. The large mass function suggests a totalsystem mass of about 2.3 solar masses, making this one of the most massive dwarfnovae known. The radial velocity curve of the primary suggests either aneccentric orbit or shadowing by an asymmetric disk. Both possibilities areinteresting. We propose to observe for one binary orbit (80 ksec) to study thequiescent X-ray emission, study the orbital modulation of the X-ray flux, and look for an X-ray eclipse
Instrument
EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2
Temporal Coverage
2007-06-28T07:15:28Z/2007-06-29T07:23:39Z
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, Prof Frederick M Walter, 2008, 'HD 109962: the Most Massive Dwarf NovaquestionMark', 17.56_20190403_1200, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-1tfcekw
