THE XMM-NEWTON /EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6
We obtained four pointings of over 100 ks each of the well-studied Wolf-Rayet star WR 6 with the XMM-Newton satellite. With a first paper emphasizing the results of spectral analysis, this follow-up highlights the X-ray variability clearly detected in all four pointings. However, phased light curves...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | en_US |
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Institute of Physics/American Astronomical Society
2015
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| Online Access: | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/93755 |
| _version_ | 1826192741621563392 |
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| author | Ignace, R. Gayley, K. G. Hamann, W.-R. Huenemoerder, David P. Oskinova, Lidia M. Pollock, A. M. T. McFall, M. |
| author2 | MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research |
| author_facet | MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research Ignace, R. Gayley, K. G. Hamann, W.-R. Huenemoerder, David P. Oskinova, Lidia M. Pollock, A. M. T. McFall, M. |
| author_sort | Ignace, R. |
| collection | MIT |
| description | We obtained four pointings of over 100 ks each of the well-studied Wolf-Rayet star WR 6 with the XMM-Newton satellite. With a first paper emphasizing the results of spectral analysis, this follow-up highlights the X-ray variability clearly detected in all four pointings. However, phased light curves fail to confirm obvious cyclic behavior on the well-established 3.766 day period widely found at longer wavelengths. The data are of such quality that we were able to conduct a search for event clustering in the arrival times of X-ray photons. However, we fail to detect any such clustering. One possibility is that X-rays are generated in a stationary shock structure. In this context we favor a corotating interaction region (CIR) and present a phenomenological model for X-rays from a CIR structure. We show that a CIR has the potential to account simultaneously for the X-ray variability and constraints provided by the spectral analysis. Ultimately, the viability of the CIR model will require both intermittent long-term X-ray monitoring of WR 6 and better physical models of CIR X-ray production at large radii in stellar winds. |
| first_indexed | 2024-09-23T09:28:12Z |
| format | Article |
| id | mit-1721.1/93755 |
| institution | Massachusetts Institute of Technology |
| language | en_US |
| last_indexed | 2024-09-23T09:28:12Z |
| publishDate | 2015 |
| publisher | Institute of Physics/American Astronomical Society |
| record_format | dspace |
| spelling | mit-1721.1/937552022-09-30T14:36:06Z THE XMM-NEWTON /EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6 Ignace, R. Gayley, K. G. Hamann, W.-R. Huenemoerder, David P. Oskinova, Lidia M. Pollock, A. M. T. McFall, M. MIT Kavli Institute for Astrophysics and Space Research Huenemoerder, David P. We obtained four pointings of over 100 ks each of the well-studied Wolf-Rayet star WR 6 with the XMM-Newton satellite. With a first paper emphasizing the results of spectral analysis, this follow-up highlights the X-ray variability clearly detected in all four pointings. However, phased light curves fail to confirm obvious cyclic behavior on the well-established 3.766 day period widely found at longer wavelengths. The data are of such quality that we were able to conduct a search for event clustering in the arrival times of X-ray photons. However, we fail to detect any such clustering. One possibility is that X-rays are generated in a stationary shock structure. In this context we favor a corotating interaction region (CIR) and present a phenomenological model for X-rays from a CIR structure. We show that a CIR has the potential to account simultaneously for the X-ray variability and constraints provided by the spectral analysis. Ultimately, the viability of the CIR model will require both intermittent long-term X-ray monitoring of WR 6 and better physical models of CIR X-ray production at large radii in stellar winds. United States. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory contract SV3-73016, Chandra X-Ray Center and Science Instruments) German Aerospace Center (DLR) (grant 50 OR 1302) 2015-02-04T18:54:04Z 2015-02-04T18:54:04Z 2013-09 2013-06 Article http://purl.org/eprint/type/JournalArticle 0004-637X 1538-4357 http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/93755 Ignace, R., K. G. Gayley, W.-R. Hamann, D. P. Huenemoerder, L. M. Oskinova, A. M. T. Pollock, and M. McFall. “ THE XMM-NEWTON /EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6 .” The Astrophysical Journal 775, no. 1 (August 30, 2013): 29. © 2013 American Astronomical Society. en_US http://dx.doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/775/1/29 Astrophysical Journal Article is made available in accordance with the publisher's policy and may be subject to US copyright law. Please refer to the publisher's site for terms of use. application/pdf Institute of Physics/American Astronomical Society American Astronomical Society |
| spellingShingle | Ignace, R. Gayley, K. G. Hamann, W.-R. Huenemoerder, David P. Oskinova, Lidia M. Pollock, A. M. T. McFall, M. THE XMM-NEWTON /EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6 |
| title | THE XMM-NEWTON /EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6 |
| title_full | THE XMM-NEWTON /EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6 |
| title_fullStr | THE XMM-NEWTON /EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6 |
| title_full_unstemmed | THE XMM-NEWTON /EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6 |
| title_short | THE XMM-NEWTON /EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6 |
| title_sort | xmm newton epic x ray light curve analysis of wr 6 |
| url | http://hdl.handle.net/1721.1/93755 |
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