Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy
Scientific paper
Apr 1998
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=1998apj...497..935h&link_type=abstract
Astrophysical Journal v.497, p.935
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astronomy
43
Stars: Atmospheres, Stars: Individual Name: Sirius B, Ultraviolet: Stars, Stars: White Dwarfs
Scientific paper
Long-standing questions regarding the temperature, gravity, mass, and radius of the well-known white dwarf Sirius B are considered in light of new data. Recently obtained Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer (EUVE) observations and reprocessed IUE NEWSIPS data have produced a new, well-defined effective temperature of 24,790 +/- 100 K and a surface gravity of log g = 8.57 +/- 0.06 for Sirius B. A new Hipparcos parallax for the Sirius system of pi = 0."37921 +/- 0."00158 is used in conjunction with the above spectroscopic results and the previously published gravitational redshift to yield a mass of 0.984 +/- 0.074 M&sun; and a radius of R = 0.0084 +/- 0.00025R&sun; for the white dwarf. Combining these results with the existing astrometric mass for Sirius B gives a refined mass estimate of M = 1.034 +/- 0.026 M&sun;. The mass and radius for Sirius B are found to be consistent with the theoretical mass-radius relation for a carbon-core white dwarf. The EUVE spectrum is also used to determine a firm upper limit of He/H = 1.8 x 10-5 for the helium mixing ratio in the photosphere of Sirius B. IUE echelle spectra of Sirius B provide an estimate of log NH I = 17.72 +/- 0.1 for the interstellar H I column to this star.
Barstow Martin Adrian
Bruhweiler Fred C.
Cruise A. M.
Holberg Jay Brian
Penny Alan J.
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