New Results from the Supernova Ia Progenitor Survey

UK Abstract. We report on a systematic radial velocity survey for double degen-erate (DD) binaries as potential progenitors of type Ia supernovae: SPY (ESO Supernovae Ia Progenitor surveY). More than 1000 white dwarfs and pre-white dwarfs were observed with the VLT. Our aim is to perform a statistically signif-icant test of the DD scenario. SPY detected more than 100 new binary white dwarfs, dramatically increasing the number of known DDs. System parame-ters are determined from ongoing follow-up observations. Our sample includes systems with masses close to the Chandrasekhar limit and a probable SN Ia progenitor candidate