Short orbital-period binary star detected at the heart of the planetary nebula M 3-1

European astronomers have discovered a new binary star at the center of the planetary nebula M 3-1. The newly found binary has an extraordinary short orbital period of slightly more than three hours, which makes it one of the shortest orbital-period binary central stars known to date. The detection is detailed in a paper published July 30 on arXiv.org.

Binary central stars could be essential for advancing our knowledge about the formation and evolution of planetary nebulae. For astronomers, short-period post-common-envelope binary systems could be especially helpful in improving the understanding of these processes. Moreover, finding new examples of such objects could provide important insights into the nature of the post-common-envelope phase itself.

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Credit: Jones et al., 2018

HST archival imagery of M 3-1 showing its remarkable filamentary waist and extended jet-like structures

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A planetary nebula is a phase of stellar evolution that the sun should experience several billion years from now, when it expands to become a red giant.