WR20a: a massive cornerstone binary system comprising two extreme early-type stars
Preprint
- 28 April 2004
Abstract
We analyse spectroscopic observations of WR20a revealing that this star is a massive early-type binary system with a most probable orbital period of \sim 3.675 days. Our spectra indicate that both components are most likely of WN6ha or O3If^*/WN6ha spectral type. The orbital solution for a period of 3.675 days yields extremely large minimum masses of 70.7 \pm 4.0 and 68.8 \pm 3.8 M_{\odot} for the two stars. These properties make WR20a a cornerstone system for the study of massive star evolution.Keywords
All Related Versions
- Version 1, 2004-04-28, ArXiv
- Published version: Astronomy & Astrophysics, 420 (2), L9.
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