First results with the IOTA3 imaging interferometer: The spectroscopic binaries lambda Vir and WR 140

Abstract

We report the first spatially-resolved observations of the spectroscopic binaries lambda Vir and WR 140, which includes the debut of aperture-synthesis imaging with the upgraded three-telescope IOTA interferometer. Using IONIC-3, a new integrated optics beam combiner capable of precise closure phase measurement, short observations were sufficient to extract the angular separation and orientation of each binary system and the component brightness ratio. Most notably, the underlying binary in the prototypical colliding-wind source WR 140 (WC7 + O4/5) was found to have a separation of ~13 milli-arcseconds with a position angle consistent with the images of the 2001 dust shell ejection only if the Wolf-Rayet star is fainter than the O star at 1.65 microns. We also highlight lambda Vir whose peculiar stellar properties of the Am star components will permit direct testing of current theories of tidal evolution when the full orbit is determined.

To appear in ApJ Letters (13 pages, 2 tables, 3 figures)

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Cited by in corpus (31)

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• Hot exozodiacal dust resolved around Vega with IOTA/IONIC
• First Surface-resolved Results with the IOTA Imaging Interferometer: Detection of Asymmetries in AGB stars
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• Bright Localized Near-Infrared Emission at 1-4 AU in the AB Aurigae Disk Revealed by IOTA Closure Phases
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• Physical Orbit for Lambda Virginis and a Test of Stellar Evolution Models
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• The variability of the BRITE-est Wolf-Rayet binary, ${\gamma }^2$ Velorum I. Photometric and spectroscopic evidence for colliding winds
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• Pupil plane optimization for single-mode multiaxial optical interferometry with a large number of telescopes
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