A new magnetic white dwarf: PG 2329+267

We have discovered that the white dwarf PG 2329+267 is magnetic, and, assuming a centred dipole structure, has a dipole magnetic field strength of approximately 2.3 MG. This makes it one of only approximately 4 per cent of isolated white dwarfs with a detectable magnetic field. Linear Zeeman splitting, as well as quadratic Zeeman shifts, is evident in the hydrogen Balmer sequence and circular spectropolarimetry reveals ∼10 per cent circular polarization in the two displaced σ components of Hα. We suggest from comparison with spectra of white dwarfs of known mass that PG 2329+267 is more massive than typical isolated white dwarfs, in agreement with the hypothesis that magnetic white dwarfs evolve from magnetic chemically peculiar Ap and Bp type main-sequence stars.