A catalogue of orbital periods of cataclysmic variables and candidates from TESS observations
Year: 2026
Type: article
Abstract: ABSTRACT We present a systematic analysis of 2544 cataclysmic variable systems and related candidates observed by the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), with the aim of compiling a comprehensive catalogue of orbital periods. Using 2-min photometric time-series data, we applied an automated algorithm to generate Lomb–Scargle periodograms and identify the most significant coherent periodic signals, which were subsequently verified through visual inspection. This process yielded a confident sample of 910 sources exhibiting at least one periodic signal, hereafter referred to as the Cataclysmic Variable Confident Catalogue (CCC). For each object, we report the most likely orbital period together with additional periodic features such as spin modulations and/or superhump signals when present. To assess consistency with previously published measurements, we cross-matched the CCC with the Ritter & Kolb catalogue, identifying 300 overlapping systems, of which 215 showed full agreement with the R&K orbital periods, while 39 displayed discrepancies for which the R&K values were revised based on our TESS measurements and supporting evidence from the literature. Overall, the CCC provides a means to validate known orbital periods, propose corrections where necessary, and offer new determinations for systems with previously unknown periods, thereby supporting a more complete and reliable characterization of the cataclysmic variable population.
Authors: Meryem K Dağ, Simone Scaringi, Kieran O’Brien, Martina Veresvarska, Nikita Rawat, Yusuke Tampo, Santiago Hernández-Díaz, Colin Littlefield, Krystian Iłkiewicz, Domitilla de Martino, D A H Buckley, Zackery A Irving, Liliana E Rivera Sandoval, Wendy Mendoza, Ryan J Oelkers, Peter Garnavich, Gavin Ramsay, Yuri Cavecchi, Manuel Pichardo Marcano, J Kára, Elmé Breedt, Axel D Schwope, Christian Knigge, N Castro Segura, Boris Gänsicke, Keith Inight
Institutions: Durham University, Astronomical Observatory of Capodimonte, National Institute for Astrophysics, South African Astronomical Observatory, University of Cape Town, University of Tübingen, Ames Research Center, Bay Area Environmental Research Institute, Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center, Polish Academy of Sciences, University of the Free State, University of Southampton, The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, University of Notre Dame, Armagh Observatory & Planetarium, Universidad de La Laguna, Instituto de Astrofísica de Canarias, Universitat Politècnica de Catalunya, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, University of Cambridge, Leibniz Institute for Astrophysics Potsdam, University of Warwick
Language: English
Subfield: Astronomy and Astrophysics
Field: Physics and Astronomy
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,046
Funders: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, California Department of Fish and Game, UK Research and Innovation, European Commission, Durham University, Schweizerischer Nationalfonds zur Förderung der Wissenschaftlichen Forschung, Narodowe Centrum Nauki, Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México, Science and Technology Facilities Council
OpenAlex ID: W7135368701