Explaining the transient fast blue absorption lines in the massive binary system Eta Carinae

Abstract

We use recent observations of the He I $\lambda 10830\mathring{A}$ absorption line and 3D hydrodynamical numerical simulations of the winds collision, to strengthen the case for an orientation of the semimajor axis of the massive binary system Eta Carinae where the secondary star is toward us at periastron passage. Those observations show that the fast blue absorption component exists for only several weeks prior to the periastron passage. We show that the transient nature of the fast blue absorption component supports a geometry where the fast secondary wind, both pre and post-shock material, passes in front of the primary star near periastron passage.

8 pages, 5 figures, accepted by MNRAS, includes astro-ph only appendices

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Cited by in corpus (5)

• Modelling the Central Constant Emission X-ray component of eta Carinae
• The Optical Wind Line Variability of $\eta$ Carinae During the 2009.0 Event
• The X-ray properties of Eta Carinae during its 2020 X-ray minimum
• The Interaction of the Eta Carinae Primary Wind with a Century Old Slow Equatorial Ejecta
• The orientation of Eta Carinae and the powering mechanism of intermediate luminosity optical transients (ILOTs)