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 j components of Ha. 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.