Sporadic Dips from Extended Debris Transiting the Metal-rich White Dwarf SBSS 1232+563
We present the discovery of deep but sporadic transits in the flux of SBSS 1232+563, a metal-rich white dwarf polluted by disrupted exoplanetary debris. Nearly 25 yr of photometry from multiple sky surveys reveal evidence of occasional dimming of the white dwarf, most notably evident in an 8 month l...
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IOP Publishing
2025-01-01
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| Series: | The Astrophysical Journal |
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| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ada5fd |
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| author | J. J. Hermes Joseph A. Guidry Zachary P. Vanderbosch Mariona Badenas-Agusti Siyi Xu Malia L. Kao Antonio C. Rodriguez Keith Hawkins |
| author_facet | J. J. Hermes Joseph A. Guidry Zachary P. Vanderbosch Mariona Badenas-Agusti Siyi Xu Malia L. Kao Antonio C. Rodriguez Keith Hawkins |
| author_sort | J. J. Hermes |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | We present the discovery of deep but sporadic transits in the flux of SBSS 1232+563, a metal-rich white dwarf polluted by disrupted exoplanetary debris. Nearly 25 yr of photometry from multiple sky surveys reveal evidence of occasional dimming of the white dwarf, most notably evident in an 8 month long event in 2023 that caused a >40% drop in flux from the star. In-transit follow-up shows additional short-timescale (minutes- to hours-long) dimming events. Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite photometry suggests a coherent 14.842 hr signal that could represent the dominant orbital period of debris. Six low-resolution spectra collected at various transit depths over two decades show no evidence of significant changes in the observed elemental abundances. SBSS 1232+563 demonstrates that debris transits around white dwarfs can be sporadic, with many years of inactivity before large-amplitude dimming events. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-04355660eb3d49028c1704491f0efd3c |
| institution | Kabale University |
| issn | 1538-4357 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2025-01-01 |
| publisher | IOP Publishing |
| record_format | Article |
| series | The Astrophysical Journal |
| spelling | doaj-art-04355660eb3d49028c1704491f0efd3c2025-02-04T06:24:12ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal1538-43572025-01-0198015610.3847/1538-4357/ada5fdSporadic Dips from Extended Debris Transiting the Metal-rich White Dwarf SBSS 1232+563J. J. Hermes0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5941-2286Joseph A. Guidry1https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9632-7347Zachary P. Vanderbosch2https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0853-3464Mariona Badenas-Agusti3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4903-567XSiyi Xu4https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8808-4282Malia L. Kao5https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5745-3535Antonio C. Rodriguez6https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4189-9668Keith Hawkins7https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1423-2174Department of Astronomy, Boston University , 725 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA ; jjhermes@bu.eduDepartment of Astronomy, Boston University , 725 Commonwealth Avenue, Boston, MA 02215, USA ; jjhermes@bu.eduDivision of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy, California Institute of Technology , Pasadena, CA 91125, USAInstitute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge , Madingley Road, Cambridge CB3 0HA, UKGemini Observatory/NSF’s NOIRLab , 670 N. A’ohoku Place, Hilo, HI 96720, USADepartment of Astronomy, University of Texas at Austin , 2515 Speedway, Austin, TX 78712, USADivision of Physics, Mathematics, and Astronomy, California Institute of Technology , Pasadena, CA 91125, USADepartment of Astronomy, University of Texas at Austin , 2515 Speedway, Austin, TX 78712, USAWe present the discovery of deep but sporadic transits in the flux of SBSS 1232+563, a metal-rich white dwarf polluted by disrupted exoplanetary debris. Nearly 25 yr of photometry from multiple sky surveys reveal evidence of occasional dimming of the white dwarf, most notably evident in an 8 month long event in 2023 that caused a >40% drop in flux from the star. In-transit follow-up shows additional short-timescale (minutes- to hours-long) dimming events. Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite photometry suggests a coherent 14.842 hr signal that could represent the dominant orbital period of debris. Six low-resolution spectra collected at various transit depths over two decades show no evidence of significant changes in the observed elemental abundances. SBSS 1232+563 demonstrates that debris transits around white dwarfs can be sporadic, with many years of inactivity before large-amplitude dimming events.https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ada5fdWhite dwarf starsTransitsDebris disksVariable stars |
| spellingShingle | J. J. Hermes Joseph A. Guidry Zachary P. Vanderbosch Mariona Badenas-Agusti Siyi Xu Malia L. Kao Antonio C. Rodriguez Keith Hawkins Sporadic Dips from Extended Debris Transiting the Metal-rich White Dwarf SBSS 1232+563 The Astrophysical Journal White dwarf stars Transits Debris disks Variable stars |
| title | Sporadic Dips from Extended Debris Transiting the Metal-rich White Dwarf SBSS 1232+563 |
| title_full | Sporadic Dips from Extended Debris Transiting the Metal-rich White Dwarf SBSS 1232+563 |
| title_fullStr | Sporadic Dips from Extended Debris Transiting the Metal-rich White Dwarf SBSS 1232+563 |
| title_full_unstemmed | Sporadic Dips from Extended Debris Transiting the Metal-rich White Dwarf SBSS 1232+563 |
| title_short | Sporadic Dips from Extended Debris Transiting the Metal-rich White Dwarf SBSS 1232+563 |
| title_sort | sporadic dips from extended debris transiting the metal rich white dwarf sbss 1232 563 |
| topic | White dwarf stars Transits Debris disks Variable stars |
| url | https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ada5fd |
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