| Summary: | Development of analytic binary star models is discussed in historical and on-going perspective, beginning with an overview of paradigm shifts, the merits of direct (rectification-free) models, and fundamental four-type binary system morphology. Attention is called to the likelihood that many or even most cataclysmic variables may be of the double contact morphological type. Eclipsing binary distance estimates differ from those of standard candles in being individually measurable—without reliance on (usually nearby) objects that are assumed similar. Recent progress on circumstellar accretion disk models is briefly summarized, with emphasis on the separate roles of fluid dynamic, structural, and analytic models. Time-related parameters (ephemeris, apsidal motion, and light travel time) now can be found with a unified algorithm that processes light curves, velocity curves, and pre-existing eclipse timings together, without need to compute any new timings. Changes in data publication practices are recommended and logical errors and inconsistencies in terminology are noted. Parameter estimation strategies are discussed.
|
|---|