Computing the rate of Type Ia supernovae (SNe Ia) from first principles is difficult because there are large uncertainties regarding several key binary processes such as common envelope evolution, tidal interactions, and the efficiency of mass transfer. Fortunately, a range of observational parameters of binaries in intermediate stages of evolution can help us model these processes in a way that is likely to mirror the true binary evolution. We discuss how this observationally-motivated approach may have the effect of increasing the predicted rate of single degenerate progenitors of SNe Ia, while simultaneously decreasing the number of double degenerate progenitors.

Relatives to Planetary Nebulae, such as barium stars or symbiotic systems, can shed light on the connection between Planetary Nebulae and binarity. Because of the observational selection effects against direct spectroscopic detection of binary PNe cores with orbital periods longer than a few dozen days, at present these “awkward relatives” are a critical source of our knowledge about the binary PNe population at longer periods. Below a few examples are discussed, posing constraints on the attempts to model nebula ejection process in a binary.

Metallicity may play an important role in the symbiotic phenomenon. Unfortunately, chemical abundances of symbiotic stars have been thus far poorly studied. Ongoing abundance analysis of a sample of over 30 symbiotic stars based on high-resolution, near-infrared spectra obtained with the Phoenix spectrometer on Gemini South telescope will allow for the first time to address properly the metallicity problem as well as provide important information about the past history of these binaries.

Fe II fluorescence by PAR has been investigated in eight symbiotic stars having a wide range in temperature of the hot component and orbital period. The data used are spectra obtained from the IUE archive. All pumping lines investigated in this work are in the short wavelength region of IUE (1200-2000 Å), except for He ɪɪ λ1084.942 and O VI λ1032.041. The resulting Fe ɪɪ fluorescence lines are mainly in the long wavelength region (2000-3300 Å), but a few fall in the same region as the pumping lines. The aim is to understand the optimal conditions for formation of Fe ɪɪ fluorescence lines caused by PAR. Three of the selected systems, RR Tel, AG Peg and V1016 Cyg, have 10-30 active Fe ɪɪ channels. Two conditions connect those systems to each other: The hot component is a white dwarf of extreme temperature (80·103-150·103 K) and all three systems are so called symbiotic novae and have had outbursts during the last 150 years. Three systems, AG Dra, RW Hya and R Aqr, have only 2-3 active Fe ɪɪ channels. In the two remaining systems, CI Cyg and T CrB, Fe ɪɪ fluorescence lines were totally absent. These two systems have two features in common: The emission strength of highly ionized elements is less than in most symbiotic systems, and the hot component is suspected to be an accreting main sequence star rather than a white dwarf.