Welcome to the new version of CaltechAUTHORS. Login is currently restricted to library staff. If you notice any issues, please email coda@library.caltech.edu
Published May 1, 2008 | Published
Journal Article Open

Two-micron all-sky survey J01542930+0053266 : a new eclipsing M dwarf binary system

Abstract

We report on Two-Micron All-Sky Survey (2MASS) J01542930+0053266, a faint eclipsing system composed of two M dwarfs. The variability of this system was originally discovered during a pilot study of the 2MASS Calibration Point Source Working Data base. Additional photometry from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey yields an eight-passband light curve from which we derive an orbital period of 2.639 0157 ± 0.000 0016 d. Spectroscopic followup confirms our photometric classification of the system, which is likely composed of M0 and M1 dwarfs. Radial velocity measurements allow us to derive the masses (M1 = 0.66 ± 0.03Mסּ; M2 = 0.62 ± 0.03Mסּ) and radii (R1 = 0.64 ± 0.08Rסּ; R2 = 0.61 ± 0.09Rסּ) of the components, which are consistent with empirical mass–radius relationships for low-mass stars in binary systems. We perform Monte Carlo simulations of the light curves which allow us to uncover complicated degeneracies between the system parameters. Both stars show evidence of Hα emission, something not common in early-type M dwarfs. This suggests that binarity may influence the magnetic activity properties of low-mass stars; activity in the binary may persist long after the dynamos in their isolated counterparts have decayed, yielding a new potential foreground of flaring activity for next generation variability surveys.

Additional Information

© 2008 The Authors. Journal compilation. Accepted 2008 January 28. Received 2008 January 24; in original form 2007 October 16.We thank M. Claire, S. Hawley and M. Solontoi for useful discussions, and H. Bouy for assistance with the Keck observations. EA acknowledges support from NSF CAREER grant AST-0645416. GB thanks the NSF for grant support through AST-0098468. This paper includes data gathered with the 6.5-m Magellan Telescopes located at Las Campanas Observatory, Chile. This publication also makes use of data products from the Two-Micron All-Sky Survey, which is a joint project of the University of Massachusetts and the IR Processing and Analysis Centre/California Institute of Technology, funded by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration and the National Science Foundation. This work is based on observations obtained from theW. M. Keck Observatory, which is operated as a scientific partnership among the California Institute of Technology, the University of California and the National Aeronautics and Space Administration. Funding for the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) and SDSS-II has been provided by the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation, the Participating Institutions, the National Science Foundation, the US Department of Energy, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration, the Japanese Monbukagakusho, the Max Planck Society and the Higher Education Funding Council for England. The SDSS Web site is http://www.sdss.org/. The SDSS is managed by the Astrophysical Research Consortium (ARC) for the Participating Institutions. The Participating Institutions are the American Museum of Natural History, Astrophysical Institute Potsdam, University of Basel, University of Cambridge, Case Western Reserve University, The University of Chicago, Drexel University, Fermilab, the Institute for Advanced Study, the Japan Participation Group, The Johns Hopkins University, the Joint Institute for Nuclear Astrophysics, the Kavli Institute for Particle Astrophysics and Cosmology, the Korean Scientist Group, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (LAMOST), Los Alamos National Laboratory, the Max-Planck-Institute for Astronomy (MPIA), the Max-Planck-Institute for Astrophysics (MPA), New Mexico State University, Ohio State University, University of Pittsburgh, University of Portsmouth, Princeton University, the United States Naval Observatory and the University of Washington.

Attached Files

Published - BECmnras08.pdf

Files

BECmnras08.pdf
Files (569.4 kB)
Name Size Download all
md5:b4ceafdc0c94ed5e71efa5f8bcdd2b92
569.4 kB Preview Download

Additional details

Created:
August 22, 2023
Modified:
October 18, 2023