Synchronous Rotation in the Eclipsing Binary 68 Herculis Inferred from Doppler Shifts in its Spectrum and Light Curve Modeling

Authors

Kenneth W. McLaughlin, Loras College
Janak Panthi, Loras College

Document Type

Research

Keywords

eclipsing binary, light curve, orbital parameters, Doppler shifts

Abstract

Our differential photometry of the eclipsing binary 68 Herculis through V- and R-filters shows periodic minima consistent with a previously established period. As a function of its orbital motion, we report spectra over a limited wavelength range encompassing H-alpha 656.3 nm and helium 667.8 nm lines. Doppler shifts of both stars were resolved in H-alpha, while only the more massive star rendered the helium line with Doppler shifts that agree with the radial velocity we derive for it from the H-alpha profile. Sinusoidal curve-fits to the orbital dependence of the radial velocities imply circular orbits for both components, with amplitudes indicating a mass ratio for the two stars in agreement with published values. A subtle Doppler shift associated with stellar rotation is evident in the radial velocity of the primary component as its eclipse commences; modeling indicates this rotation is synchronous with the orbital revolution, an expected tidal effect of near-contact binary systems.

Publication Date

2014

Journal Title

Journal of the Iowa Academy of Sciences

Volume

121

Issue

1-4

First Page

5

Last Page

15

Copyright

© Copyright 2014 by the Iowa Academy of Science, Inc.

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

Recommended Citation

McLaughlin, Kenneth W. and Panthi, Janak (2014) "Synchronous Rotation in the Eclipsing Binary 68 Herculis Inferred from Doppler Shifts in its Spectrum and Light Curve Modeling," Journal of the Iowa Academy of Science: JIAS, 121(1-4), 5-15.
Available at: https://scholarworks.uni.edu/jias/vol121/iss1/3