T Pyxidis: The First Cataclysmic Variable with a Collimated Jet

Abstract

We present the first observational evidence for a collimated jet in a cataclysmic variable system; the recurrent nova T Pyxidis. Optical spectra show bipolar components of H$\alpha$ with velocities $\sim 1400km/s$, very similar to those observed in the supersoft X-ray sources and in SS 433. We argue that a key ingredient of the formation of jets in the supersoft X-ray sources and T Pyx (in addition to an accretion disk threaded by a vertical magnetic field), is the presence of nuclear burning on the surface of the white dwarf.

10 pages 2 figures to appear in ApJ Letters

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• The Recurrent Nova T Pyx: Distance and Remnant Geometry from Light Echoes
• The absence of jets in cataclysmic variable stars
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• The Detailed Photometric and Spectroscopic Study of the 2011 Outburst of the Recurrent Nova T Pyxidis from 0.8 to 250 Days after Discovery
• The secrets of T Pyx: I. UV observations
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• A search for radio emission from Galactic supersoft X-ray sources
• Complex Velocity Fields in the Shell of T Pyxidis
• Pre-outburst $Chandra$ Observations of the Recurrent Nova T Pyxidis