The Be/X-ray binary system V 0332+53: A Short Review

TL;DR

This review discusses the physics of Be/X-ray binary systems, focusing on the neutron star environment during intermediate-luminosity outbursts, exemplified by the V 0332+53 system, highlighting recent optical and X-ray observations.

Contribution

It provides a synthesis of recent optical and X-ray observational data on V 0332+53, emphasizing the importance of intermediate-luminosity outbursts for studying neutron star magnetospheres.

Findings

Optical long-term evolution of V 0332+53 analyzed.

X-ray emission during 2008 outburst characterized.

Insights into neutron star magnetosphere physics gained.

Abstract

Be/X-ray binary systems provide an excellent opportunity to study the physics around neutron stars through the study of the behaviour of matter around them. Intermediate and low-luminosity type outbursts are interesting because they provide relatively clean environments around neutron stars. In these conditions the physics of the magnetosphere around the neutron star can be better studied without being very disturbed by other phenomena regarding the transfer of matter between the two components of the Be/X-ray binary system. A recent study presents the optical longterm evolution of the Be/X-ray binary V 0332+53 plus the X-ray emission mainly during the intermediate-luminosity outburst on 2008. In this paper we comment on the context of these observations and on the properties that can be derived through the analysis of them.