Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer Proportional Counter Array Observations of the 35-day Cycle of Hercules X-1

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy

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The X-ray binary Hercules X-1/HZ Her (or Her X-1) is perhaps the best-known of the set of X-ray binaries with long term periodicities. Its 35-day cycle consists of a regular sequence of high, low and short-high states. The cause of the cycle has been established to be changing obscuration of the line-of-sight to the neutron star by a warped accretion disk which precesses in the binary frame. In this study, we use X-ray observations of Her X-1 taken over a period of more than 10 years with the Proportional Counter Array (PCA) instrument of the Rossi X-ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) satellite. With 35-day phase determined by our previous study using RXTE All Sky Monitor data, we study the nature of the changes that occur over 35-day cycle that can be seen in detail with RXTE/PCA data. This includes overall spectral changes and the timing of pre-eclipse, post-eclipse and anomalous dips. Various models for the dips are assessed in the light of the new information.
This work funded by the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada.

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