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Tim O'Brien's Research |
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Novae |
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Classical nova outbursts are the result of
thermonuclear explosions on the surface of a white dwarf star in a close
binary system. Material from the other star in the system (one not unlike
our own sun) falls onto the surface of the white dwarf over thousands of
years. The pressure at the base of this layer of accreted material builds
up until thermonuclear reactions begin explosively. An Earth's mass or
more of material is ejected from the surface of the white dwarf at speeds
of a few hundred to a few thousand kilometres per second. Old novae are
therefore surrounded by shells of ejected matter illuminated by the light
from the central binary system. Over several years we have been conducting both observational and theoretical studies of these nebular shells. Our principal interest is in the origin of structures such as equatorial rings (see image of RR pic at right), polar blobs/rings and tails. |
Optical image of the shell of the nova RR
Pictoris which outburst in 1927: Click here for some more pictures of old nova shells |
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Research papers |
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Abstract Figures |
Hubble Space Telescope imaging and ground-based spectroscopy of old nova shells - II. The bipolar shell of the slow nova HR Del |
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Harman D.J., O'Brien, T.J. 2003, MNRAS, in press |
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Abstract Figures |
Kinematics of the Pencil nebula (RCW 37) and its association with the young Vela supernova remnant RX J0852.0-4622 | ||
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Redman M. P., Meaburn J., Bryce M., Harman D. J., O'Brien T. J. |
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Abstract Figures |
MERLIN Radio Detection of an Interaction Zone within a Binary Orion Proplyd System | ||
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Graham M., Meaburn J., Garrington S.T., O'Brien T. J., Henney W.J., O'Dell C.R. 2002, ApJ, 570, 222 |
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Abstract Figures
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The remnant of Nova Cassiopeiae 1993 (V705 Cassiopeiae) | ||
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Eyres S.P.S., Bode M.F., O'Brien T. J., Watson S.K., Davis R.J. |
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Abstract Figures |
A possible detection of diffuse extended X-ray emission in the environment of the globular cluster NGC 6779 | ||
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Hopwood M.E.L., Evans A., Roberts T.P., Burleigh M.R., Odenkirchen M., Beardmore A.P., O'Brien, T.J., Jeffries R.D., Penny A., Eyres S.P.S. |
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Abstract Figures
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Hubble Space Telescope imaging and ground-based spectroscopy of old nova shells - I. FH Ser, V533 Her, BT Mon, DK Lac and V476 Cyg |
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Gill C.D., O'Brien, T.J. 2000, MNRAS, 314, 175 |
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| Go to Tim O'Brien's home page | |||