arXiv subjects

Ygal Klein

Publications and source records attributed to Ygal Klein.

5 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2025

von Zeipel-Kozai-Lidov oscillations in nearby bright stars. I. Lambda Ophiuchi

The challenge of constraining both the inner and the outer orbits in multiple stars has resulted in a growing abyss between the rich theoretical and the sparse observational studies of von Zeipel-Kozai-Lidov (ZKL) oscillations in stellar systems. Here we solve for the full orbital architecture of the bright intermediate-mass nearby system Lambda Ophiuchi based on astrometric measurements of the outer orbit (period of 129 years) compiled in the Sixth Catalog of Orbits of Visual Binary Stars and new VLTI/GRAVITY interferometric measurements that are used to determine the inner orbit (period of 42 days). The orbits are retrograde and misaligned by either $88.5\pm1.9^o$ or $113.5\pm1.9^o$, which in either case results in the inner binary currently undergoing ZKL oscillations. While pure Newtonian point source evolution would have predicted the stars in the inner binary to have merged long ago, in reality the eccentricity oscillations are significantly modulated by general relativistic, tidal and rotational bulge precession. We show that due to the effect of ``slaved'' precession the dynamics can still be solved semi-analytically. We find that the (currently unknown) inclination angles between the stellar spins axes and the inner orbital axis play a very important role in the amplitude of the ZKL oscillations, which is at a minimum $\Delta e = e_{\mathrm{max}} - e_{\mathrm{min}} \simeq 0.15$ and could be as high as $\Delta e \simeq 0.70$. We argue that currently feasible spectroscopic and interferometric observations could allow for a complete and unique dynamical solution for this system.

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arXiv2025

Which is the most eccentric binary known? Insights from the 2023/4 pericenter passages of Zeta Bo\"otis and Eta Ophiuchi

There is a clear dearth of very eccentric binaries among those for which individual eccentricities can be measured. In this paper we report on observations of the two nearby, bright and very eccentric visual binaries Zeta Bo\"otis ($\zeta$ Boo) and Eta Ophiuchi ($\eta$ Oph), for which VLTI/GRAVITY interferometric observations were obtained during their pericenter passages in 2023/4. Previous observations of $\zeta$ Boo suggest an eccentricity $e>0.99$ with high significance, implying that it has the highest eccentricity of any known binary. However, our interferometric measurements near periastron passage reveal that the eccentricity is actually $e=0.980450\pm0.000064$ (second highest well constrained eccentricity) with a pericenter distance $a_p=0.818\pm0.009\text{ au}$. We attribute the previous over-estimation to a degeneracy that plagues very eccentric visual binary orbital solutions. For $\eta$ Oph we find an eccentricity $e=0.93077\pm0.00013$ (compared to previous estimates of $e=0.95\pm 0.02$), a pericenter distance $a_p=2.15\pm0.10 \text{ au}$ and attribute the over-estimated dynamical mass in the previous solution to an underestimated error in the semi-major axis. With no additional close companions capable of influencing their further evolution, both systems are expected to fully circularize as the stars evolve and expand, ultimately leading to close circular binaries with no memory of their very eccentric past.

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arXiv2022

Binarity and beyond in A stars I. Survey description and first results of VLTI/GRAVITY observations of VAST targets with high Gaia-Hipparcos accelerations

A-stars are the progenitors of about half of the white dwarfs (WDs) that currently exist. The connection between the multiplicity of A-stars and that of WDs is not known and the observational mapping of both multiplicities are far from complete. Possible companions at separations of tens of AU are particularly poorly explored. We are conducting a near-infrared interferometric survey with VLTI/GRAVITY of twenty out of 108 southern A stars within the VAST sample which show large Gaia-Hipparcos proper motion changes suggestive of a $M \sim 1 M_{\odot}$ companion at separations of $1-20$ AU. In this paper, we detail our sample selection and report on the interferometric detection of $8_{-0}^{+2}$ new stars (including four high multiplicity (3+) systems) in a partial sample of 13 targets. Moreover, we also conduct a common proper motion search for the 108 A stars using Gaia eDR3 and which resulted in 10 new detections and confirmation of several previous Adaptive Optics companions as physical. We discuss our preliminary results in the context of the separation distribution of A stars and implications for the multiplicity of WDs. In particular, we find that (i) the apparent suppression of companions to A stars below about 30-50 AU is very likely due to an observational bias, (ii) the fact that 4 of the 6 closest WDs have a companion within a few tens of AU is a statistical fluke but 10-20 such binaries are likely still missing within 20 pc, (iii) a large fraction of such systems likely had high multiplicity (3+) progenitors with very close ($< 1$ AU) companions to the primary A star, and must therefore have undergone non-trivial evolution.

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arXiv2022

Beyond binarity in A stars II. Disentangling the four stars in the vicinity of the triple HIP 87813 within the quintuple system HJ2814

A-stars are the progenitors of about half of the white dwarfs (WDs) that currently exist. The connection between the multiplicity of A-stars and that of WDs is not known and both multiplicities are still poorly explored. We are in the process of obtaining tight constraints on a sample of 108 southern A-type stars that are part of the nearby VAST sample \citep{DeRosa14} by conducting near-infrared interferometric follow-up observations to the (twenty) stars among them which have large $Gaia$-$Hipparcos$ accelerations. In this paper, we combine spectroscopy, adaptive optics imaging, NIR interferometry and $Gaia$-$Hipparcos$ astrometry in order to disentangle the stars in the complicated HIP 87813 = HJ2814A system. We show that (i) a previously discovered faint star that is separated by 2" from the A star is actually a background source; (ii) the $Gaia$-$Hipparcos$ acceleration is caused by a newly discovered $0.74 M_{\odot}$ star that was missed in previous AO images and we solve for its $P \approx 60 \text{ yrs}$ astrometric orbit; (iii) by combining previously obtained spectra we show that the A star has a very close $0.85 M_{\odot}$ companion on a 13.4-day period orbit. The radial velocity curve combined with NIR interferometry constrains its orbit allowing Kozai-Lidov oscillations in the hierarchical triple to be ruled out. The system HJ2814 is one of only about fifteen known 5+ systems with an A star primary, and will result in a system of between two to five bound WDs within around a Hubble time.

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arXiv2016

The Way To a Double Degenerate: $\sim15-20$ per cent of $1M_{\odot} \le M \le 8M_{\odot}$ Stars have a $M>1M_{\odot}$ Companion

We find that $\sim 15-20$ per cent of A-type stars or red giants are bound with a massive companion ($M_{\rm secondary} > 1M_{\odot}$) in an intermediate wide orbit ($0.5<P<5000\mbox{ yr}$). These massive binaries are expected to form wide-orbit, double-degenerate systems (WODDs) within $\lesssim10\mbox{ Gyr}$ implying that $\sim10$ per cent of white dwarfs (WDs) are expected to be part of a WODD with a lighter WD companion. These findings are based on an analysis of previous adaptive optics observations of A-type stars and radial velocity measurements of red giants and shed light on the claimed discrepancy between the seemingly high multiplicity function of stars and the rather low number of detected double degenerates. We expect that GAIA will find $\sim 10$ new WODDs within $20\mbox{ pc}$ from the sun. These results put a stringent constraint on the collision model of type Ia supernovae in which triple stellar systems that include a WODD as the inner binary are required to be abundant.

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