16 research outputs found
First Results from the CHARA Array. II. A Description of the Instrument
The CHARA Array is a six 1-m telescope optical/IR interferometric array
located on Mount Wilson California, designed and built by the Center for High
Angular Resolution Astronomy of Georgia State University. In this paper we
describe the main elements of the Array hardware and software control systems
as well as the data reduction methods currently being used. Our plans for
upgrades in the near future are also described
Tomographic Separation of Composite Spectra. VIII. The Physical Properties of the Massive Compact Binary in the Triple Star System HD 36486 (delta Orionis A)
Double-lined spectroscopic orbital elements have recently been found for the
central binary in the massive triple, delta Orionis A based on radial
velocities from cross-correlation techniques applied to IUE high dispersion
spectra and He I 6678 spectra obtained at Kitt Peak. The primary and secondary
velocity amplitudes were found to be 94.9 +/- 0.6 km/s and 186 +/- 9 km/s
respectively. Tomographic reconstructions of the primary and secondary stars'
spectra confirm the O9.5 II classification of the primary and indicate a B0.5
III type for the secondary. The widths of the UV cross-correlation functions
are used to estimate the projected rotational velocities, Vsin i = 157 +/- 6
km/s and 138 +/- 16 km/s for the primary and secondary, respectively implying
that both stars rotate faster than their orbital motion. We used the
spectroscopic results to make a constrained fit of the Hipparcos light curve of
this eclipsing binary, and the model fits limit the inclination to the range
between 67 and 77 degrees. The i = 67 degrees solution, which corresponds to a
near Roche-filling configuration, results in a primary mass of 11.2 solar
masses and a secondary mass of 5.6 solar masses, both of which are
substantially below the expected masses for stars of their luminosity. This
binary may have experienced a mass ratio reversal caused by Case A Roche lobe
overflow, or the system may have suffered extensive mass loss through a binary
interaction, perhaps during a common envelope phase, in which most of the
primary's mass was lost from the system rather than transferred to the
secondary.Comment: 27 pages, 15 figures in press, the Astrophysical Journal, February 1,
200
A Spectroscopic Orbit for Regulus
We present a radial velocity study of the rapidly rotating B-star Regulus
that indicates the star is a single-lined spectroscopic binary. The orbital
period (40.11 d) and probable semimajor axis (0.35 AU) are large enough that
the system is not interacting at present. However, the mass function suggests
that the secondary has a low mass (M_2 > 0.30 M_sun), and we argue that the
companion may be a white dwarf. Such a star would be the remnant of a former
mass donor that was the source of the large spin angular momentum of Regulus
itself.Comment: 18 pages, 2 figures, ApJL in pres
The Angular Diameter of λ Boötis
Using the CHARA Array and the Palomar Testbed Interferometer, the chemically peculiar star λ Boötis has been spatially resolved. We have measured the limb darkened angular diameter to be θ_(LD) = 0.533 ± 0.029 mas, corresponding to a linear radius of R_* = 1.70 ± 0.10 R_⊙. The measured angular diameter yields an effective temperature for λ Boo of T_(eff) = 8887 ± 242 K. Based on literature surface gravity estimates spanning log g = 4.0-4.2 cm s^(-2), we have derived a stellar mass range of M_* = 1.1-1.7 M_⊙. For a given surface gravity, the linear radius uncertainty contributes approximately σ(M_*) = 0.1-0.2 M to the total mass uncertainty. The uncertainty in the mass (i.e., the range of derived masses) is primarily a result of the uncertainty in the surface gravity. The upper bound of our derived mass range (log g = 4.2, M_* = 1.7 ± 0.2 M_⊙) is consistent with 100-300 Myr solar metallicity evolutionary models. The midrange of our derived masses (log g = 4.1, M_* = 1.3 ± 0.2 M_⊙) is consistent with 2-3 Gyr metal-poor evolutionary models. A more definitive surface gravity determination is required to determine a more precise mass for λ Boo
Binary and Multiple O-Type Stars in the Cas OB6 Association
We present the results of time-resolved spectroscopy of 13 O-type stars in
the Cas OB6 stellar association. We conducted a survey for radial velocity
variability in search of binary systems, which are expected to be plentiful in
young OB associations. Here we report the discovery of two new single-lined
binaries, and we present new orbital elements for three double-lined binaries
(including one in the multiple star system HD 17505). One of the double-lined
systems is the eclipsing binary system DN Cas, and we present a preliminary
light curve analysis that yields the system inclination, masses, and radii. We
compare the spectra of the single stars and the individual components of the
binary stars with model synthetic spectra to estimate the stellar effective
temperatures, gravities, and projected rotational velocities. We also make fits
of the spectral energy distributions to derive E(B-V), R=A_V/E(B-V), and
angular diameter. A distance of 1.9 kpc yields radii that are consistent with
evolutionary models. We find that 7 of 14 systems with spectroscopic data are
probable binaries, consistent with the high binary frequency found for other
massive stars in clusters and associations.Comment: 40 pages, ApJ, in pres
First Results from the CHARA Array. I. An Interferometric and Spectroscopic Study of the Fast Rotator alpha Leonis (Regulus)
We report on K-band interferometric observations of the bright, rapidly
rotating star Regulus (type B7 V) made with the CHARA Array on Mount Wilson,
California. Through a combination of interferometric and spectroscopic
measurements, we have determined for Regulus the equatorial and polar diameters
and temperatures, the rotational velocity and period, the inclination and
position angle of the spin axis, and the gravity darkening coefficient. These
first results from the CHARA Array provide the first interferometric
measurement of gravity darkening in a rapidly rotating star and represent the
first detection of gravity darkening in a star that is not a member of an
eclipsing binary system.Comment: Accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal, 44 pages w/ 14
figure
Modern optical astronomy: technology and impact of interferometry
The present `state of the art' and the path to future progress in high
spatial resolution imaging interferometry is reviewed. The review begins with a
treatment of the fundamentals of stellar optical interferometry, the origin,
properties, optical effects of turbulence in the Earth's atmosphere, the
passive methods that are applied on a single telescope to overcome atmospheric
image degradation such as speckle interferometry, and various other techniques.
These topics include differential speckle interferometry, speckle spectroscopy
and polarimetry, phase diversity, wavefront shearing interferometry,
phase-closure methods, dark speckle imaging, as well as the limitations imposed
by the detectors on the performance of speckle imaging. A brief account is
given of the technological innovation of adaptive-optics (AO) to compensate
such atmospheric effects on the image in real time. A major advancement
involves the transition from single-aperture to the dilute-aperture
interferometry using multiple telescopes. Therefore, the review deals with
recent developments involving ground-based, and space-based optical arrays.
Emphasis is placed on the problems specific to delay-lines, beam recombination,
polarization, dispersion, fringe-tracking, bootstrapping, coherencing and
cophasing, and recovery of the visibility functions. The role of AO in
enhancing visibilities is also discussed. The applications of interferometry,
such as imaging, astrometry, and nulling are described. The mathematical
intricacies of the various `post-detection' image-processing techniques are
examined critically. The review concludes with a discussion of the
astrophysical importance and the perspectives of interferometry.Comment: 65 pages LaTeX file including 23 figures. Reviews of Modern Physics,
2002, to appear in April issu
Asteroseismology and Interferometry
Asteroseismology provides us with a unique opportunity to improve our
understanding of stellar structure and evolution. Recent developments,
including the first systematic studies of solar-like pulsators, have boosted
the impact of this field of research within Astrophysics and have led to a
significant increase in the size of the research community. In the present
paper we start by reviewing the basic observational and theoretical properties
of classical and solar-like pulsators and present results from some of the most
recent and outstanding studies of these stars. We centre our review on those
classes of pulsators for which interferometric studies are expected to provide
a significant input. We discuss current limitations to asteroseismic studies,
including difficulties in mode identification and in the accurate determination
of global parameters of pulsating stars, and, after a brief review of those
aspects of interferometry that are most relevant in this context, anticipate
how interferometric observations may contribute to overcome these limitations.
Moreover, we present results of recent pilot studies of pulsating stars
involving both asteroseismic and interferometric constraints and look into the
future, summarizing ongoing efforts concerning the development of future
instruments and satellite missions which are expected to have an impact in this
field of research.Comment: Version as published in The Astronomy and Astrophysics Review, Volume
14, Issue 3-4, pp. 217-36
CHARA Array K'-band Measurements of the Angular Dimensions of Be Star Disks
We present the first K'-band, long-baseline interferometric observations of
the northern Be stars gamma Cas, phi Per, zeta Tau, and kappa Dra. The
measurements were made with multiple telescope pairs of the CHARA Array
interferometer, and in every case the observations indicate that the
circumstellar disks of the targets are resolved. We fit the interferometric
visibilities with predictions from a simple disk model that assumes an
isothermal gas in Keplerian rotation. We derive fits of the four model
parameters (disk base density, radial density exponent, disk normal
inclination, and position angle) for each of the targets. The resulting
densities are in broad agreement with prior studies of the IR excess flux and
the resulting orientations generally agree with those from interferometric
H-alpha and continuum polarimetric observations. We find that the angular size
of the K' disk emission is smaller than that determined for the H-alpha
emission, and we argue that the difference is the result of a larger H-alpha
opacity and the relatively larger neutral hydrogen fraction with increasing
disk radius. All the targets are known binaries with faint companions, and we
find that companions appear to influence the interferometric visibilities in
the cases of phi Per and kappa Dra. We also present contemporaneous
observations of the H-alpha, H-gamma, and Br-gamma emission lines. Synthetic
model profiles of these lines that are based on the same disk inclination and
radial density exponent as derived from the CHARA Array observations match the
observed emission line strength if the disk base density is reduced by
approximately 1.7 dex.Comment: ApJ in press (2007 Jan 1), 55 pages, 14 figure