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Title: The BANANA project. V. Misaligned and precessing stellar rotation axes in CV Velorum

Journal Article · · Astrophysical Journal
; ;  [1];  [2];  [3];  [4]; ;  [5];  [6];  [7];  [8]
  1. Department of Physics, and Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139 (United States)
  2. Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)
  3. Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics, University of California Santa Cruz, Santa Cruz, CA 95064 (United States)
  4. Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie, Königstuhl 17, D-69117 Heidelberg (Germany)
  5. Institut d'Astrophysique et de Géophysique, Université de Liège, Allée du 6 Août 17, Bat. B5C, Liège 1 (Belgium)
  6. Observatoire Astronomique de lÚniversité de Genève, Chemin des Maillettes 51, Sauverny CH-1290 (Switzerland)
  7. Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, Niels Bohrweg 2, 2333 CA Leiden (Netherlands)
  8. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, 7000 East Avenue, Livermore, CA 94551 (United States)

As part of the Binaries Are Not Always Neatly Aligned project (BANANA), we have found that the eclipsing binary CV Velorum has misaligned rotation axes. Based on our analysis of the Rossiter-McLaughlin effect, we find sky-projected spin-orbit angles of β{sub p} = –52° ± 6° and β{sub s} = 3° ± 7° for the primary and secondary stars (B2.5V + B2.5V, P = 6.9 days). We combine this information with several measurements of changing projected stellar rotation speeds (vsin i {sub *}) over the last 30 yr, leading to a model in which the primary star's obliquity is ≈65°, and its spin axis precesses around the total angular momentum vector with a period of about 140 yr. The geometry of the secondary star is less clear, although a significant obliquity is also implicated by the observed time variations in the vsin i {sub *}. By integrating the secular tidal evolution equations backward in time, we find that the system could have evolved from a state of even stronger misalignment similar to DI Herculis, a younger but otherwise comparable binary.

OSTI ID:
22357129
Journal Information:
Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 785, Issue 2; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English