The activity of the dwarf nova RU Pegasi with rapidly changing outburst types

TL;DR

This study analyzes long-term optical data of the dwarf nova RU Pegasi, revealing variable outburst types, stable and changing recurrence times, and the influence of multiple mechanisms on disc activity without significant white dwarf irradiation effects.

Contribution

It provides new insights into the variable outburst behavior and the mechanisms influencing the accretion disc in RU Pegasi, based on extensive long-term observational data.

Findings

Outburst start points vary without changing recurrence time.

Recurrence time T_C is typically around 90 days.

Variations in T_C and outburst properties suggest multiple influencing mechanisms.

Abstract

RU Peg is a dwarf nova (DN) of the U Gem type. Our analysis of its long-term optical activity uses the data from the AAVSO database. It concentrates on investigating the properties of the individual outbursts and the time evolution of the ensemble of these events. No significant irradiation of the disc by the white dwarf was detected. In the interpretation, a variable steepness of the rising branches of the individual outbursts shows that the start of outbursts of RU Peg can occur at various distances from the disc centre without remarkable changes of the outburst recurrence time $T_{\rm C}$. The disc overflow of the inflowing mass stream, varying with time, could contribute to the changes in the starting position of the heating front, hence the variations of the outburst types. A typical length of $T_{\rm C}$ was 90 days. The segments of the relatively stable length of $T_{\rm C}$ were accompanied by the primarily little variable and small values of the fluence (the energy radiated in the optical band in the individual outbursts). Jumps of $T_{\rm C}$, accompanied by the big scatter of the fluences, sometimes replaced them. In the interpretation, a combination of variations of $T_{\rm C}$ with the unstable properties of the outbursts, including an unstable mass transfer rate between the components, shows the influence of several mechanisms on the state of the disc in various time segments.