Optical clues to the nature of Hercules X-1/HZ Herculis

Journal Article · Fri Oct 15 04:00:00 EDT 1976 · Astrophys. J.; (United States)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1086/154751· OSTI ID:7137242

Gerend, D; Boynton, P E

The 1d/sub ./7 optical light curve of Her X-1/HZ Her varies in a highly systematic fashion over the 35 day X-ray on-off cycle. These variations can be reproduced in some detail by a relatively simple model based on a tilted, precessing accretion disk which serves three functions: a source of optical radiation, a shadowing body for X-ray emission, and an occulting body for the reemitted optical radiation from the heated face of HZ Her. A minimum variance relaxation of this model onto the available photometric data suggests that the disk is well represented by a precessing, steady-state configuration of accreting matter, that the disk essentially fills the critical Roche lobe of the collapsed companion, and that the disk is tilted out of the orbital plane by an angle which exceeds the complement of the orbital inclination. (AIP)

• Research Organization: Department of Astronomy, University of Washington
• OSTI ID: 7137242
• Journal Information: Astrophys. J.; (United States), Journal Name: Astrophys. J.; (United States) Vol. 209:2; ISSN ASJOA
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

640102* -- Astrophysics & Cosmology-- Stars & Quasi-Stellar
Radio & X-Ray Sources
640103 -- Astrophysics & Cosmology-- Quasi-Stellar
Radio
& X-Ray Sources-- (-1987)
71 CLASSICAL AND QUANTUM MECHANICS
GENERAL PHYSICS
BINARY STARS
COSMIC RAY SOURCES
COSMIC X-RAY SOURCES
ECLIPSE
MATHEMATICAL MODELS
OPTICAL PROPERTIES
PHYSICAL PROPERTIES
STAR ACCRETION
STAR EVOLUTION
STAR MODELS
STARS
VARIATIONS