Dynamical masses of a selected sample of orbital binaries

Orbital binary stars are essential objects for determining dynamical and physical properties of stars through a combined analysis of photometric and astrometric data. We compiled a set of orbital binaries with known trigonometric parallaxes and orbits of high quality, using data from current versions of the Catalogue of Orbits and Ephemerides of Visual Double Stars and the Sixth Catalog of Orbits of Visual Binary Stars as well as including updated information from WDS and SIMBAD. We constructed distributions of orbital binaries among dynamical mass, period, semi-major axis, and eccentricity of systems, which characterize the set. Some problems related to the parameterization of orbital binaries are also discussed in the paper.

Full Tables 1 and 2 are only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/546/A69