English (United Kingdom)

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/featured_content/oa?rat=en

https://curated-unify.zendy.io/wp-json/zendy-region/v1/highlighted_journal/

Global: Zendy Plus annual

Presents the access of premium content as premium feature

Premium Content

Presents the keyphrase highlighting as premium feature

Keyphrase Highlighting

Presents the summarisation as premium feature

Summarisation

Insights

Presents the pdf analysis as premium feature

PDF Analysis

Presents the zaia usage as premium feature

ZAIA

Global: Zendy Tools annual

Global: Zendy Free Plan

Global: Zendy Tools monthly

Global: Zendy Plus monthly

We present the serendipitous discovery of a low luminosity nova occurring ina symbiotic binary star system in the Milky Way. We lay out the extensivearchival data alongside new follow-up observations related to the stellarobject V$^*$ CN Cha in the constellation of Chamaeleon. The object had longperiod ($\sim\! 250\,$day), high amplitude ($\sim\! 3\,$mag) opticalvariability in its recent past, preceding an increase in optical brightness by$\sim\! 8\,$magnitudes and a persistence at this luminosity for about 3 years,followed by a period of $\sim\! 1.4\,{\rm mag}\,{\rm yr}^{-1}$ dimming. Theobject's current optical luminosity seems to be dominated by H$\alpha$emission, which also exhibits blue-shifted absorption (a P-Cygni-like profile).After consideration of a number of theories to explain these myriadobservations, we determine that V$^*$ CN Cha is most likely a symbiotic (anevolved star-white dwarf binary) system which has undergone a long-duration,low luminosity, nova. Interpreted in this way, the outburst in V$^*$ CN Cha isamong the lowest luminosity novae ever observed.

A Mystery in Chamaeleon: Serendipitous Discovery of a Galactic Symbiotic Nova