The binary central stars of planetary nebulae

TL;DR

This paper discusses the significance of binary central stars in planetary nebulae, highlighting recent discoveries that impact our understanding of the common envelope phase and its role in various astrophysical phenomena.

Contribution

It provides an overview of recent findings on binary central stars in planetary nebulae and their implications for astrophysical processes like supernovae type Ia.

Findings

Many planetary nebulae host close-binary central stars.

Surprising discoveries constrain the common envelope phase.

Implications for supernovae type Ia and transient phenomena.

Abstract

It is now clear that central star binarity plays a key role in the formation and evolution of planetary nebulae, with a significant fraction playing host to close-binary central stars which have survived one or more common envelope episodes. Recent studies of these systems have revealed many surprises which place important constraints on the common envelope - a critical phase in the formation of a wide variety of astrophysical phenomena, including the cosmologically important supernovae type ia and other transient phenomena which will be detected by next-generation facilities, like the Large Synoptic Survey Telescope and the space-based gravitational wave detector the Laser Interferometer Space Antenna.