Infrared Counterpart of the Microquasar GRS 1758−258
| Autor: | Shami Chatterjee, S. G. Djorgovski, Eiichi Egami, William A. Heindl, D. M. Rothstein, Stephen S. Eikenberry |
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| Jazyk: | angličtina |
| Rok vydání: | 2002 |
| Předmět: |
Physics
010308 nuclear & particles physics Infrared Astrophysics (astro-ph) FOS: Physical sciences Binary number Astronomy and Astrophysics Astrophysics Astrometry Compact star 01 natural sciences law.invention Telescope Orbit Space and Planetary Science law 0103 physical sciences Roche lobe Low Mass 010303 astronomy & astrophysics |
| Popis: | We present revised infrared (2.2 micron) astrometry of the field containing the Galactic microquasar GRS 1758-258, using observations at the Keck I 10-m telescope. We find three candidates for the microquasar within a 3 sigma error circle, but none within 2 sigma. We show that if the 18.4 day X-ray period of GRS 1758-258 is due to a binary orbit, then only one of the three candidates, an early K-type giant, is large enough to power the microquasar via Roche lobe overflow. We therefore identify this star as the infrared counterpart of GRS 1758-258, which we classify as a low mass X-ray binary. Long term infrared monitoring of this source should provide further information about the microquasar system, including a confirmation of the X-ray period and an estimate of the compact object's mass. 4 pages, 2 figures; accepted for publication in ApJ Letters |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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