| NSF Org: |
AST Division Of Astronomical Sciences |
| Recipient: |
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| Initial Amendment Date: | August 6, 2002 |
| Latest Amendment Date: | July 2, 2003 |
| Award Number: | 0205297 |
| Award Instrument: | Continuing Grant |
| Program Manager: |
Michael M. Briley
AST Division Of Astronomical Sciences MPS Directorate for Mathematical and Physical Sciences |
| Start Date: | August 1, 2002 |
| End Date: | July 31, 2006 (Estimated) |
| Total Intended Award Amount: | $257,389.00 |
| Total Awarded Amount to Date: | $257,389.00 |
| Funds Obligated to Date: |
FY 2003 = $173,744.00 |
| History of Investigator: |
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| Recipient Sponsored Research Office: |
58 EDGEWOOD AVE NE ATLANTA GA US 30303-2921 (404)413-3570 |
| Sponsor Congressional District: |
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| Primary Place of Performance: |
58 EDGEWOOD AVE NE ATLANTA GA US 30303-2921 |
| Primary Place of
Performance Congressional District: |
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| Unique Entity Identifier (UEI): |
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| Parent UEI: |
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| NSF Program(s): | STELLAR ASTRONOMY & ASTROPHYSC |
| Primary Program Source: |
app-0103 |
| Program Reference Code(s): |
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| Program Element Code(s): |
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| Award Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Fund Agency Code: | 4900 |
| Assistance Listing Number(s): | 47.049 |
ABSTRACT
AST-0205297
PI Gies
The majority of the most massive stars are born in close pairs that are destined to interact over their lifetime. The influence of a companion can dramatically alter the evolutionary paths of the stars: the mass donors can be stripped down to a fraction of their original size while the mass gainers can become rejuvenated as more massive and luminous stars. These altered stars will eventually explode as peculiar supernovae, and their remnants dominate the appearance of the high energy universe (as massive X-ray binaries containing neutron stars and black holes). Although the starting and end-points of binary evolution are understood the processes that forge the intermediate stages are still mysterious, and great uncertainties surround the issues of mass and angular momentum transfer and loss.
This project will be an investigation of these processes at various stages in the evolutionary drama through spectroscopic studies of a number of key systems. The first part is a survey of two dozen targets for new binaries with hard to detect companions. The second section is an orbital analysis of the H a emission flux formed in the circumstellar gas in two currently interacting systems. The third part examines the link between mass transfer and the spin up of rapidly rotating stars, and includes a hunt for faint post-mass transfer companions of Be stars. The final component is a joint H a -X-ray study of mass transfer in massive X-ray binaries as documented in extensive H a spectroscopy obtained with the KPNO Coude Feed Telescope.
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