Publication Abstracts

Wilson and Sofia 1976

Wilson, R.E., and S. Sofia, 1976: Effects of tidal distortion on binary-star velocity curves and ellipsoidal variation. Astrophys. J., 203, 182-186, doi:10.1086/154062.

Radial velocity curves for the more massive components of binaries with extreme mass ratios can show a large distortion due to tides, as first recognized by Sterne. Binaries in which the effect is large should be rare because nearly all such binaries would be in the rapid phase of mass transfer. However, the optical counterparts of some X-ray binaries may show the effect, which would then serve as a new means of extracting considerable information from the observations. The essential parts of the computational procedure are given. Light curves for ellipsoidal variables with extreme mass ratios were also computed, and were found to be less sinusoidal than those with normal mass ratios.

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BibTeX Citation

@article{wi01200l,
  author={Wilson, R. E. and Sofia, S.},
  title={Effects of tidal distortion on binary-star velocity curves and ellipsoidal variation},
  year={1976},
  journal={Astrophysical Journal},
  volume={203},
  pages={182--186},
  doi={10.1086/154062},
}

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RIS Citation

TY  - JOUR
ID  - wi01200l
AU  - Wilson, R. E.
AU  - Sofia, S.
PY  - 1976
TI  - Effects of tidal distortion on binary-star velocity curves and ellipsoidal variation
JA  - Astrophys. J.
JO  - Astrophysical Journal
VL  - 203
SP  - 182
EP  - 186
DO  - 10.1086/154062
ER  -

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