A Far Ultraviolet Study of the Old Nova V841 Oph
Abstract
We have carried out a synthetic spectral analysis of archival IUE spectra of the old nova V841 Oph (Nova Oph 1848) taken 15 years apart. The spectra reveal a rising continuum shortward of 1560, a C iv P-Cygni profile indicative of wind outflow associated with disk accretion in one spectrum, a deep Ly α profile, and strong N v (1238, 1242) and O v (1371) wind/coronal absorption lines. Numerous sharp interstellar resonance lines are also present. A grid of high gravity atmospheres and accretion disk models, spanning a wide range of inclinations, accretion rates and white dwarf masses was compared to the de-reddened spectra. We find that, for a steady state accretion disk model to account for the FUV spectra, the accretion rate is only 3 × 10-11 M/yr, 147 years after its outburst in 1848, with an implied distance within 300 pc. The accretion rate at 147 years post-outburst is smaller than expected for an old nova.
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