Chandra Observations of WR147 Reveal a Double X-ray Source


Svetozar A. Zhekov$^1$ and Sangwook Park $^2$

1 - JILA, University of Colorado, Boulder, CO
80309-0440, USA
2 - Department of Astronomy and Astrophysics,
Pennsylvania State University, 525 Davey Laboratory, University
Park, PA 16802, USA

We report the first results from deep X-ray
observations of the Wolf-Rayet binary system
WR147 with the Chandra HETG. Analysis of the
zeroth order data reveals that WR147 is a
double X-ray source. The northern counterpart
is likely associated with the colliding wind
region, while the southern component is
certainly identified with the WN star in this
massive binary. The latter is the source of
high energy X-rays (including the Fe K_alpha
complex at 6.67 keV) whose production
mechanism is yet unclear. For the first time,
X-rays are observed directly from a WR star
in a binary system.

Reference: The ApJ Letters;
http://arxiv.org/abs/0912.3554
Status: Manuscript has been accepted

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Email: zhekovs@colorado.edu