THE BINARY WHITE DWARF LHS 3236*

摘要

The white dwarf LHS 3236 (WD1639+153) is shown to be a double-degenerate binary, with each component having a high mass. Astrometry at the U.S. Naval Observatory gives a parallax and distance of 30.86 ± 0.25?pc and a tangential velocity of 98?km?s–1, and reveals binary orbital motion. The orbital parameters are determined from astrometry of the photocenter over more than three orbits of the 4.0?yr period. High-resolution imaging at the Keck Observatory resolves the pair with a separation of 31 and 124 mas at two epochs. Optical and near-IR photometry give a set of possible binary components. Consistency of all data indicates that the binary is a pair of DA stars with temperatures near 8000 and 7400?K and with masses of 0.93 and 0.91 M ☉; also possible is a DA primary and a helium DC secondary with temperatures near 8800 and 6000?K and with masses of 0.98 and 0.69 M ☉. In either case, the cooling ages of the stars are ~3?Gyr and the total ages are 4?Gyr. The combined mass of the binary (1.66-1.84 M ☉) is well above the Chandrasekhar limit; however, the timescale for coalescence is long.