Luminous red novae are thought to be the result of the merger of twonon-degenerate stars in a contact binary (W Ursae Majoris star). Previously,stellar mergers in these systems have only been recognized after they hadalready entered the luminous red nova stage, making it difficult to study theirpre-outburst properties. KIC 9832227 was recently identified as a contact binarythat may undergo a merger in approximately five years. This provides us with aunique opportunity to study the evolution of a contact binary as it approachesthe luminous red nova stage. The proposed XMM-Newton observation will provide abaseline for future X-ray monitoring leading up to the merger and allow us toinvestigate the stellar activity on the binary.
Instrument
EMOS1, EMOS2, EPN, OM, RGS1, RGS2
Temporal Coverage
2017-04-18T14:51:53Z/2017-04-19T03:21:53Z
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 Dirk Pandel, 2018, 'KIC 9832227: A Contact Binary about to Merge', 17.56_20190403_1200, European Space Agency, https://doi.org/10.5270/esa-xy2d0ph
