Resolving Ultracool White Dwarf Binaries

Details Resolving Ultracool White Dwarf Binaries Resolving Ultracool White Dwarf Binaries

Jul 2005

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2005hst..prop10564f&link_type=abstract

HST Proposal ID #10564

Physics

Optics

Hst Proposal Id #10564 Cool Stars

Scientific paper

We propose an ACS/HRC imaging survey of the coolest white dwarfs known in order to search for binarity. Current models fail to match observed spectral energy distributions of these sub-4000K stellar remnants, consistently predicting much lower luminosities than observed. A possible explanation is that they are binary in nature. Because these cool degenerates have no spectral features, the only way to investigate their apparent overluminosity is with very high resolution imaging, which can only be done with HST {these stars are far too faint to be observed with adaptive optics on the ground}. Optical wavelengths are ideal because the spectral energy distributions of these old degenerates peak near 600 nm. With the F435W filter we will be able to partially resolve equally luminous binaries as close as 0.02", which corresponds to within 0.6 AU for over half of the 12 proposed target stars. The collected data will be critical in determining whether these stars represent the oldest white dwarfs in the solar neighborhood.

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