Mass and eccentricity constraints on the planetary debris orbiting the white dwarf WD 1145+017

2016/09/08 by Pol Gurri, Dimitri Veras, Boris T. Gänsicke +1 · 3 citations
Engineering · Physics and Astronomy · #Astro and Planetary Science #Astrobiology #Astronomy #Astrophysics #Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies #Debris #Eccentricity (behavior) #Engineering #Meteorology #Physics #Stars #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #Transit (satellite) #White dwarf #astro-ph.EP #astro-ph.SR

paper · pdf · doi:10.1093/mnras/stw2293

Accepted to MNRAS

arxiv created 2016/09/08 · openalex publication_date 2016/09/12 · arxiv updated 2016/09/21 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

Being the first of its kind, the white dwarf WD 1145+017 exhibits a complex system of disintegrating debris which offers a unique opportunity to study its disruption process in real time. Even with plenty of transit observations there are no clear constraints on the masses or eccentricities of such debris. Using N-body simulations, we show that masses greater than ≃1020 kg (a tenth of the mass of Ceres) or orbits that are not nearly circular (eccentricity > 10−3) dramatically increase the chances of the system becoming unstable within 2 yr, which would contrast with the observational data over this timespan. We also provide a direct comparison between transit phase shifts detected in the observations and by our numerical simulations.

Citations

• A Gaseous Metal Disk Around a White Dwarf
• The Chemical Composition of an Extrasolar Minor Planet
• Cool DZ white dwarfs in the SDSS

Cited by

• WD 1145+017: optical activity during 2016–2017 and limits on the X-ray flux
• Formation of eccentric gas discs from sublimating or partially disrupted asteroids orbiting white dwarfs
• The critical binary star separation for a planetary system origin of white dwarf pollution