A SEARCH FOR HIERARCHICAL TRIPLES USING KEPLER ECLIPSE TIMING
- Center for High Angular Resolution Astronomy and Department of Physics and Astronomy, Georgia State University, P.O. Box 4106, Atlanta, GA 30302-4106 (United States)
- Department of Astronomy, San Diego State University, San Diego, CA 92182-1221 (United States)
We present the first results of a Kepler survey of 41 eclipsing binaries that we undertook to search for third star companions. Such tertiaries will periodically alter the eclipse timings through light travel time and dynamical effects. We discuss the prevalence of starspots and pulsation among these binaries and how these phenomena influence the eclipse times. There is no evidence of short-period companions (P < 700 days) among this sample, but we do find evidence for long-term timing variations in 14 targets (34%). We argue that this finding is consistent with the presence of tertiary companions among a significant fraction of the targets, especially if many have orbits measured in decades. This result supports the idea that the formation of close binaries involves the deposition of angular momentum into the orbital motion of a third star.
- OSTI ID:
- 22034454
- Journal Information:
- Astronomical Journal (New York, N.Y. Online), Vol. 143, Issue 6; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 1538-3881
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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