Image Details
Caption: Figure 3.
Change in fragment orbital velocity upon splitting as a function of astrocentric distance and minimum cohesive strength. We assume a 0.6 M⊙ mass white dwarf. We use the vis-viva equation to compute the fractional changes in the velocity of the fragments, which tend to be very small (on the order of 1 part per million). These tiny changes suggest that the fragments will remain in nearly identical orbits.
© 2026. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society.