Recurrent and symbiotic novae in the OGLE data

TL;DR

This study analyzes long-term OGLE photometry of recurrent and symbiotic novae, revealing new variability patterns, correcting previous orbital period claims, and identifying an unnoticed eruption, thereby enhancing understanding of nova behaviors.

Contribution

It provides new observational insights into the variability and eruption history of specific novae, correcting prior assumptions and identifying previously unnoticed phenomena.

Findings

No variability with the claimed orbital period of V745 Sco.

Detected an unnoticed eruption of Nova LMC 1990b in 2010.

Identified eclipse-like variability in Nova LMC 1990b with a 1.26432-day period.

Abstract

We analyse long-term optical photometry for two Galactic recurrent novae (V745 Sco and V3890 Sgr) and one Large Magellanic Cloud object (Nova LMC 1990b) observed over several years by the Optical Gravitational Lensing Experiment (OGLE) sky survey. We do not find variability with the previously claimed orbital period of V745 Sco. This voids previous findings based on this value (e.g. the distance determination). The quiescence variability of this object is dominated by semiregular pulsations of the red giant secondary (with periods of 136.5 and 77.4 d). The photometry of Nova LMC 1990b reveals an unnoticed eruption in 2010 and eclipse-like variability in quiescence with a period of 1.26432(8) d. The photometric properties make this object very similar to U Sco. Finally, we describe the eruptions of two likely symbiotic novae, V5590 Sgr and OGLE-2011-BLG-1444. The secondary of V5590 Sgr is a Mira star with pulsation period of 236 d.