Long-term X-ray studies of Scorpius X-1. II. Evidence for flare-dominated intensity variations.

Data on Sco X-1 obtained with the Ariel-5 All-Sky Monitor are analyzed for variability, and it is found that a large fraction of the X-ray emission at 3 to 6 keV can be represented by shot noise. The results indicate that almost all the emission in this range can be sensibly associated with a multiplicity of shotlike flares (about 200 a day), each having a duration of about 0.33 day. It is concluded that the overall consistency with a multiplicity of long-duration shots (rather than single flares superposed on a baseline continuum) may be generally characteristic of sources with an accretion disk.