<p>I am not an expert on the topic but probably you have to specify in your search which mass regime are you looking for (low or high mass x-ray binaries). Accretion time must be important and depends on the mass. High-mass stars are young (very short life) &lt; <span class="math-container">$10^7$</span> years. This reference is quite old but probably helps a bit:</p>
<ul>
<li><a href="http://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu//full/1986IAUS..116..383H/0000383.000.html" rel="nofollow noreferrer">The Average X-Ray Lifetime of Massive X-Ray Binaries</a></li>
<li><a href="http://cds.cern.ch/record/363875/files/9809028.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Observations of accretion disks in X-ray binaries</a></li>
<li><a href="http://www-astro.physics.ox.ac.uk/%7Epodsi/lec_c1_4_c.pdf" rel="nofollow noreferrer">X-Ray Binaries</a></li>
</ul>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-02-04T16:40:46.270Z
2021-02-04T17:51:48.130Z
2021-02-04T17:51:48.130Z
Lorz.Astro
<p>The lifetime of an X-ray binary is pretty broad and it depends on the type of X-ray binary you are talking about. There are 3 main types of X-ray binaries:</p>
<ol>
<li>Low Mass X-ray Binaries</li>
<li>Intermediate Mass X-ray Binaries</li>
<li>High Mass X-ray Binaries</li>
</ol>
<p>The accretion process is drastically different for each of these types, which means that there is no broad lifetime of an X-ray binary: it depends on the type of X-ray binary you are talking about.</p>
<p>I believe High Mass X-ray Binaries last the longest, give their comparatively lower accretion rate, but again, this is influenced by a wide range of parameters, like the age of the donor star.</p>
<p>In conclusion, the lifetime depends on the type of the X-ray binary, accretion rate, and other parameters.</p>

CC BY-SA 4.0
2021-02-06T18:08:17.830Z
2021-02-06T18:08:17.830Z
AstroTeen
<p>What would be the typical lifetime of an x-ray binary? I have trouble finding a reference.</p>

<binary-star><x-ray>
What is the lifetime of an x-ray binary?
theWrongAlice
# What is the lifetime of an x-ray binary?

(Asked by: username_0 on 2021-02-04)

What would be the typical lifetime of an x-ray binary? I have trouble finding a reference.

**Tags:** binary-star, x-ray


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## 2 answers

### Answer by username_1 on 2021-02-04. Score: 2 | Accepted answer

I am not an expert on the topic but probably you have to specify in your search which mass regime are you looking for (low or high mass x-ray binaries). Accretion time must be important and depends on the mass. High-mass stars are young (very short life) < $10^7$ years. This reference is quite old but probably helps a bit:

* [The Average X-Ray Lifetime of Massive X-Ray Binaries](http://articles.adsabs.harvard.edu//full/1986IAUS..116..383H/0000383.000.html)
* [Observations of accretion disks in X-ray binaries](http://cds.cern.ch/record/363875/files/9809028.pdf)
* [X-Ray Binaries](http://www-astro.physics.ox.ac.uk/%7Epodsi/lec_c1_4_c.pdf)


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### Answer by username_2 on 2021-02-06. Score: 1

The lifetime of an X-ray binary is pretty broad and it depends on the type of X-ray binary you are talking about. There are 3 main types of X-ray binaries:

1. Low Mass X-ray Binaries
2. Intermediate Mass X-ray Binaries
3. High Mass X-ray Binaries

The accretion process is drastically different for each of these types, which means that there is no broad lifetime of an X-ray binary: it depends on the type of X-ray binary you are talking about.

I believe High Mass X-ray Binaries last the longest, give their comparatively lower accretion rate, but again, this is influenced by a wide range of parameters, like the age of the donor star.

In conclusion, the lifetime depends on the type of the X-ray binary, accretion rate, and other parameters.


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