ULTRACAM photometry of the eclipsing cataclysmic variable OU Vir

W. J. Feline, V. S. Dhillon, T. R. Marsh, M. J. Stevenson, C. A. Watson, C. S. Brinkworth

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20 Scopus citations

Abstract

We present high-speed, three-colour photometry of the faint eclipsing cataclysmic variable OU Vir. For the first time in OU Vir, separate eclipses of the white dwarf and the bright spot have been observed. We use timings of these eclipses to derive a purely photometric model of the system, obtaining a mass ratio of q = 0.175 ± 0.025, an inclination of i = 79°.2 ± 0°.7 and a disc radius of Rd/a = 0.2315 ± 0.0150. We separate the white dwarf eclipse from the light curve and, by fitting a blackbody spectrum to its flux in each passband, obtain a white dwarf temperature of T = 13 900 ± 600 K and a distance of D = 51 ± 17 pc. Assuming that the primary obeys the Nauenberg mass-radius relation for white dwarfs and allowing for temperature effects, we also find a primary mass MW/M = 0.89 ± 0.20, a primary radius R W/R = 0.0097 ± 0.0031 and an orbital separation a/R = 0.74 ± 0.05.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)1173-1179
Number of pages7
JournalMonthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
Volume347
Issue number4
DOIs
StatePublished - Feb 1 2004
Externally publishedYes

Keywords

  • Binaries: close
  • Binaries: eclipsing
  • Novae, cataclysmic variables
  • Stars: dwarf novae
  • Stars: individual: OU Vir

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