EVIDENCE FOR ELLIPSOIDAL VARIATIONS OF THE BE-STAR BINARY HD-50123
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1994
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Abstract
On the basis of 8 years of photoelectric monitoring in the Stromgren system we were able to establish that HD 50123 is an interacting binary consisting of a B6 Ve primary and an early K giant secondary which fills its Roche lobe. The orbital period is 28.601 days. The secondary contributes considerably to the flux in the y and b bands, in which the double-sinusoidal light curve typical for ellipsoidal variables is seen. A few published radial velocities of the primary are consistent with a semiamplitude of K-1 = 25 +/- 6 km s(-1), and a mass function f(M) = 0.046 +/- 0.026 M.. Preliminary estimates of the stellar masses give 5 and 1.5 M., respectively, for primary and secondary. Some implications for the binary interpretation of Be stars, as well as for the period distribution of ellipsoidal variables, are discussed.
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STARS, BE, STARS, BINARIES, SPECTROSCOPIC, STARS, INDIVIDUAL, HD 50123, STARS, ACTIVITY