Spectroscopic Binary Mass Determination Using Relativity

2006/09/30 by S. Zucker, Shay Zucker, Tal Alexander · 3 citations
Physics and Astronomy · #Astronomy #Astronomy and Astrophysical Research #Astrophysics #Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies #Binary number #Binary star #Classical mechanics #Doppler effect #Exoplanet #Luminosity #Physics #Planet #RADIUS #Radial velocity #Spectroscopy #Stars #Stellar, planetary, and galactic studies #Theory of relativity #astro-ph

paper · pdf · doi:10.1086/510799

published as Astrophys.J.654:L83-L86,2006 · 10 pages, 1 figure, accepted for publication by the Astrophysical Journal Letters

arxiv created 2006/11/14 · openalex publication_date 2006/12/18 · arxiv updated 2009/12/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05

Abstract

High-precision radial velocity techniques, which enabled the detection of extrasolar planets, are now sensitive to relativistic effects in the data of spectroscopic binaries (SBs). We show how these effects can be used to derive the absolute masses of the components of eclipsing single-lined SBs and double-lined SBs from Doppler measurements alone. High-precision stellar spectroscopy can thus substantially increase the number of measured stellar masses, thereby improving the mass-radius and mass-luminosity calibrations.

Citations

• A Jupiter-mass companion to a solar-type star
• Masses and Radii of Low-Mass Stars: Theory Versus Observations
• TheMOSTAsteroseismology Mission: Ultraprecise Photometry from Space
• Testing Stellar Models with an Improved Physical Orbit for 12 Bootis
• The HARPS search for southern extra-solar planets

Cited by

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• Measuring Distance and Properties of the Milky Way’s Central Supermassive Black Hole with Stellar Orbits
• Testing the black hole no-hair theorem with Galactic Center stellar orbits