Optical Flickering of the recurrent nova RS Ophiuchi: amplitude - flux relation

Abstract

We report observations of the flickering variability of the symbiotic recurrent nova RS~Oph at quiescence in five bands ($UBVRI$). We find evidence of a correlation between the peak-to-peak flickering amplitude ($\Delta F$) and the average flux of the hot component ($F_{\mathrm{av}}$). The correlation is highly significant, with a correlation coefficient of 0.85 and a $p$-value of~$\sim 10^{-20}$. Combining the data from all wavebands, we find a dependence of the type $\Delta F\propto F_{\mathrm{av}}^k$, with power-law index $k=1.02\pm 0.04$ for the $UBVRI$ flickering of RS~Oph. Thus, the relationship between the amplitude of variability and the average flux of the hot component is consistent with linearity. The rms amplitude of flickering is on average 8 per cent ($\pm 2$ per cent) of $F_{\mathrm{av}}$. The detected correlation is similar to that found in accreting black holes/neutron stars and cataclysmic variables. The possible reasons are briefly discussed. The data are available upon request from the authors.

accepted: MNRAS 450, 3958-3965 (2015)

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