Related papers: Observing Binaries
Binary stars are pairs of stars that are gravitationally bound, providing in some cases accurate measurements of their masses and radii. As such, they serve as excellent testbeds for the theory of stellar structure and evolution. Moreover,…
Binary stars are as common as single stars. Binary stars are of immense importance to astrophysicists because that they allow us to determine the masses of the stars independent of their distances. They are the cornerstone of the…
Stars are mostly found in binary and multiple systems, as at least 50% of all solar-like stars have companions - a fraction that goes up to 100% for the most massive stars. Moreover, a large fraction of them will interact in some way or…
Binary systems have long been recognized as the source of powerful astrophysical diagnostics. Among the many applications of binary stars, they have been used as probes of stellar structure and evolution (both of single and binary stars) in…
Binary stars produce an array of dramatic astrophysical phenomena. They allow us to probe stellar structure, nuclear physics, and gravitational wave physics. They also produce the powerful supernovae that allow us to measure the scale of…
Binary interactions are commonplace among massive stars, giving rise observed phenomena such as X-ray binaries, stripped stars & supernovae, and gravitational-wave sources. The multiplicity properties of massive stars thus represent a…
Stellar models of massive single stars are still plagued by major uncertainties. Testing and calibrating against observations is essential for their reliability. For this purpose one preferably uses observed stars that have never…
Many, possibly most, stars form in binary and higher-order multiple systems. Therefore, the properties and frequency of binary systems provide strong clues to the star-formation process, and constraints on star-formation models. However,…
The overall frequency and other statistical properties of binary systems suggest that star formation is intrinsically a complex and chaotic process, and that most binaries and single stars actually originate from the decay of multiple…
Binary stars are of course more than two stars, but they are also at least two stars. In this chapter we will review some aspects of the physics governing the evolution of single massive stars. We will also review the uncertainties of key…
The study of binary stars is worth to undertake not only to learn more about the properties of binaries as such, but also because binaries are multi-purpose astrophysical tools. This paper reviews some of the ways this effective "tool" can…
A number of efforts are underway to detect close binary stars in planetary nebulae. The primary goal of these studies is to determine the binary fraction of central stars. The next stage is a detailed analysis of the binaries to determine…
Be/X-ray binaries are the most numerous class of X-ray binaries. They constitute an excellent tracer of star formation and can be used to study several aspects of astrophysics, from mass loss in massive stars to binary evolution. This short…
It is now clear that central star binarity plays a key role in the formation and evolution of planetary nebulae, with a significant fraction playing host to close-binary central stars which have survived one or more common envelope…
The BDB, Binary star DataBase http://bdb.inasan.ru combines data of the catalogues of binary and multiple stars of all observational types. There is a number of ways for variable stars to form or to be a part of binary or multiple systems.…
The study of eclipsing binaries is our primary source of measured properties of normal stars, achieved through analysis of light and radial velocity curves of eclipsing systems. The study of oscillations and pulsations is increasingly vital…
Statistics of orbital parameters of binary stars as well as statistics of their physical characteristics bear traces of star formation history. However, statistical investigations of binaries are complicated by lacking or incomplete…
Astronomical polarimetry is a powerful technique that can provide physical information sometimes difficult or impossible to obtain by any other type of observation. Almost every class of binary star can benefit from polarimetric…
Binary stars are recognized to be important in driving the dynamical evolution of stellar systems and also in determining some of their observational features. In this study, we explore the role that binary stars have in modulating the…
Binaries are excellent astrophysical laboratories that provide us with direct measurements of fundamental stellar parameters. Compared to single isolated star, multiplicity induces new processes, offering the opportunity to confront our…