The frequency of triple and multiple stellar systems.
Abstract
A spectroscopic search for new multiple stellar systems out of a sample of 25 known binaries has been carried out with a view of the identification of a variation of the radial velocity amplitude, caused by a third distant companion through the nodal precession effect. Independent radial velocity curves and orbital elements have been rederived for the whole sample. Comparison between the present and the old orbital elements reveals a highly significant K variation in six systems, probably due to a third distant star which was undetected by previous observations. One quadruple system and a new system with V(0) variation have also been discovered. These results indicate that many known close binaries are in fact close triple or multiple systems.
- Publication:
-
Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Pub Date:
- January 1987
- Bibcode:
- 1987A&A...171..157M
- Keywords:
-
- Radial Velocity;
- Star Distribution;
- Stellar Spectrophotometry;
- Stellar Systems;
- Astronomical Catalogs;
- Binary Stars;
- Companion Stars;
- Orbital Elements;
- Astrophysics