The rise of the black hole X-ray binary AT2019wey observed with TESS

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Hauptverfasser: Jusino, Alyana, De, Kishalay, Antoni, Andrea
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2026
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author Jusino, Alyana
De, Kishalay
Antoni, Andrea
author_facet Jusino, Alyana
De, Kishalay
Antoni, Andrea
contents Black hole X-ray binaries (BHXRBs) have traditionally been discovered by X-ray surveys with cadences of hours to days. However, large optical time-domain surveys now provide novel avenues for early detection and insights into their elusive outburst triggering mechanisms. We present early-time light curves of the BHXRB AT 2019wey serendipitously observed by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). The TESS images are sampled at 30 minute cadence from $\approx2$ d prior to $\approx25$ d after outburst, providing the highest time resolution optical rising phase observations of any known BHXRB. We fit a piece-wise power law to the rising light curve, finding an outburst onset time of MJD $58817.86\pm0.09$ and power-law rise index $n=0.74\pm0.04$. The onset time precedes all ground-based optical detections, and suggests that the optical rise began after the start of the faint X-ray brightening in MAXI data. We search for periodic high frequency modulation and detect none exceeding amplitude $\approx0.48$ mJy at periods of $\gtrsim1$ h at 90% confidence.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2603_24683
institution arXiv
publishDate 2026
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle The rise of the black hole X-ray binary AT2019wey observed with TESS
Jusino, Alyana
De, Kishalay
Antoni, Andrea
High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
Black hole X-ray binaries (BHXRBs) have traditionally been discovered by X-ray surveys with cadences of hours to days. However, large optical time-domain surveys now provide novel avenues for early detection and insights into their elusive outburst triggering mechanisms. We present early-time light curves of the BHXRB AT 2019wey serendipitously observed by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). The TESS images are sampled at 30 minute cadence from $\approx2$ d prior to $\approx25$ d after outburst, providing the highest time resolution optical rising phase observations of any known BHXRB. We fit a piece-wise power law to the rising light curve, finding an outburst onset time of MJD $58817.86\pm0.09$ and power-law rise index $n=0.74\pm0.04$. The onset time precedes all ground-based optical detections, and suggests that the optical rise began after the start of the faint X-ray brightening in MAXI data. We search for periodic high frequency modulation and detect none exceeding amplitude $\approx0.48$ mJy at periods of $\gtrsim1$ h at 90% confidence.
title The rise of the black hole X-ray binary AT2019wey observed with TESS
topic High Energy Astrophysical Phenomena
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2603.24683