Hostname: page-component-cd9895bd7-p9bg8 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-12-25T16:38:25.757Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false

Binary Statistics and Star Formation*

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 April 2016

Hans Zinnecker*
Affiliation:
Royal Observatory, Edinburgh, Scotland

Abstract

Core share and HTML view are not available for this content. However, as you have access to this content, a full PDF is available via the ‘Save PDF’ action button.

Binary statistics, in particular the distributions of mass ratios and orbital periods, are reviewed in an attempt to obtain clues to possible star formation and cloud fragmentation processes. Various observational selection effects which hamper the establishment of the true distributions are discussed. Four different theories of binary formation are compared (fission, fragmentation, capture, and the disintegration of small star clusters), none of which can be ruled out. We conclude that there may be many ways to form binary systems. The dominant mode of binary formation could be ring fragmentation or disc fragmentation depending upon whether the distribution of mass ratios is found to decrease or to increase towards small mass ratios. Future speckle interferometric measurements of a sufficiently large sample of close visual binaries are suggested to settle this important observational question. The present paper is special in that it brings together a wealth of useful information, both observational and theoretical, in one place.

Type
Research Article
Copyright
Copyright © Reidel 1984

Footnotes

*

Paper presented at the Lembang-Bamberg IAU Colloquium No. 80 on ‘Double Stars: Physical Properties and Generic Relations', held at Bandung, Indonesia, 3-7 June, 1983.

References

Aarseth, S.: 1977, Revista Mexicana Astron. Astrofiz. 3, Sedal Issue (IAU Colloq. 33), 199.Google Scholar
Abt, H. A.: 1970, in Slettebak, A. (ed.), Stellar Rotation, D. Reidei Pubi. Co., Dordrecht, Holland, p. 193.Google Scholar
Abt, H. A.: 1977, Revista Mexicana Astron. Astrofiz. 3, Special Issue (IAU Colloq. 33), 47.Google Scholar
Abt, H. A.: 1978, in Gehreis, T. (ed.), Protostars and Planets, Univ. of Arizona Press, p. 323.Google Scholar
Abt, H. A.: 1979, Astron. J. 89, 1519.Google Scholar
Abt, H. A.: 1983, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 21, 343.Google Scholar
Abt, H. A. and Levy, S. G.: 1969, Astron. J. 74, 908.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Abt, H. A. and Levy, S. G.: 1976, Astrophys. J. Suppl. 30, 273.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Abt, H. A. and Sanders, W. L.: 1913, Astrophys. J. 186, 177.Google Scholar
Abt, H. A. and Snowden, M. S.: 1964, Astrophys. J. 139, 1139.Google Scholar
Alexander, M. E. and Budding, E.: 1979, Astron. Astrophys. 73, 227.Google Scholar
Allen, C. and Poveda, A.: 1974, in Kozai, Y. (ed.), ‘The Stability of the Solar System and the Small Stellar Systems', IAU Symp. 62, 239.Google Scholar
Allen, C., Tapia, M., and Parrao, L.: 1977, Revista Mexicana Astron. Astrofiz. 3, 119.Google Scholar
Ambartsumian, V. A.: 1955, Observatory 75, 22.Google Scholar
Barry, D. C: 1977, Nature 268, 509.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Batten, A. H.: 1973, Binary and Multiple Systems of Stars, Pergamon Press, New York. Google Scholar
Batten, A. H., Fletcher, J. M., and Mann, P. J.: 1978, Pubi. Doni. Astrophys. Obs. 15, 121.Google Scholar
Beichmann, C. A., Becklin, E. E., and Wynn Williams, C. G.: 1979, Astrophys. J. 232, L47.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Blaauw, A.: 1981, Proc. ESO Conference Scientific Importance of High Angular Resolution at Infrared and Optical Wavelengths, p. 391.Google Scholar
Black, D. C. and Scott, E. H.: 1982, Astrophys. J. 263, 696.Google Scholar
Bodenheimer, P.: 1978, Astrophys. J. 224, 488.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bodenheimer, P.: 1981, in Sugimoto, D., Lamb, D. Q., and Schramm, D. N. (eds.), ‘Fundamental Problems in the Theory of Stellar Evolution', IAU Symp. 93, 5.Google Scholar
Bodenheimer, P., Tohline, J. E., and Black, D. C.: 1980, Astrophys. J. 242, 209.Google Scholar
Bonneau, D.: 1979, Astron. Astrophys. 80, Lll.Google Scholar
Bonneau, D. and Foy, R.: 1980, Astron. Astrophys. 86, 295.Google Scholar
Bonneau, D., Blazit, A., Foy, R., and Labeyrie, A.: 1980, Astron. Astrophys. Suppl. 42, 185.Google Scholar
Brosche, P.: 1964, Astron. Nachrichten 288, 33.Google Scholar
Brosche, P. and Hoffmann, M.: 1979, Astrophys. Space Sci. 63, 467.Google Scholar
Boss, P. A.: 1980, Astrophys. J. 237, 866.Google Scholar
Boss, P. A.: 1982, Icarus 51, 623.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carney, B. W.: 1982, Astron. J. 87, 1527.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Carney, B. W.: 1983, Astron. J. 88, 623.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chelli, A., Perrier, C., and Lena, P.: 1983, ESO-preprint (submitted to Astrophys. J.). Google Scholar
Cohen, M. and Kuhi, L. V.: 1979, Astrophys. J. Suppl. 41, 743.Google Scholar
Cook, T. L. and Harlow, F. H.: 1978, Astrophys. J. 225, 1005.Google Scholar
Crampton, D. and Hartwick, F. D. A.: 1972, Astron. J. 77, 590.Google Scholar
Crampton, D., Hill, G., and Fisher, W. A.: 1976, Astrophys. J. 204, 502.Google Scholar
Dokuchaev, V. I. and Ozernoy, L. M.: 1978, Soviet Astron. 22, 15.Google Scholar
Dorfi, E.: 1982, Astron. Astrophys. 114, 151.Google Scholar
Drobyshevski, E. M.: 1974, Astron. Astrophys. 36, 409.Google Scholar
Ducati, J. R. and Jaschek, C: 1982, preprint.Google Scholar
Durison, R. H. and Tohline, J. E.: 1981, in D. Sugimoto, D. Q. Lamb, and D. N. Schramm (eds.), 'Fundamental Problems in the Theory of Stellar Evolution', IAU Symp. 93, 109.Google Scholar
Dyck, H. M. and Howell, R. R.: 1982, Astron. J. 87, 400.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dyck, H. M., Simon, T., and Zuckerman, B.: 1982, Astrophys. J. 255, L103.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Evans, D. S.: 1968, Quart. J. Roy. Astron. Soc. 9, 388.Google Scholar
Fekel, F.: 1981, Astrophys. J. 246, 879.Google Scholar
Fleck, R. C: 1982, Astrophys. J. 261, 631.Google Scholar
Foy, R., Chelli, A., Lena, P., and Sibille, F.: 1979, Astron. Astrophys. 79, L5.Google Scholar
Franco, J.: 1983, Astrophys. J. 264, 508.Google Scholar
Garmany, C. and Conti, P.: 1980, in Plavec, M. J., Popper, D. M., and Ulrich, R. K. (eds.), ‘Close Binary Stars: Observations and Interpretation', IAU Symp. 88, 163.Google Scholar
Gehren, T., Hippelein, H., and Münch, G.: 1981, Mitt. Astron. Ges. 52, 68.Google Scholar
Genkin, I. L. and Safronov, V. S.: 1975, Soviet Astron. 19, 189.Google Scholar
Gieseking, F.: 1983, Comptes Rendus sur les Journées de Strasbourg, 5ème Reunion, p. 4.Google Scholar
Gingold, R. A. and Monaghan, J. J.: 1978, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 184, 481.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Giuricin, G., Mardirossian, F., and Mezetti, M.: 1983, Astrophys. J. Suppl. 52, 35.Google Scholar
Gray, F.: 1982, Astrophys. J. 261, 259.Google Scholar
Guthrie, B. N. G.: 1983, in Maeder, A. and A., Renzini (eds.), ‘Observational Tests of the Stellar Evolution Theory', IAU Symp. 105, in press.Google Scholar
Hachisu, I. and Eriguchi, Y.: 1982, Prog. Theor. Phys. 68, 206.Google Scholar
Hanson, R. B., Jones, B. F., and Lin, D. N. C.: 1983, Astrophys. J. 270, L27.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harris, D. L., III, Strand, K. A., and Worley, C. E.: 1963, in Strand, K. A. (ed.), Stars and Stellar Systems III, University of Chicago Press, Chapter 15, p. 273.Google Scholar
Hartmann, W. K.: 1970, Mem. Soc. Roy. Sci. Liège 14, 49.Google Scholar
Heintz, W. D.: 1969, X Roy. Astron. Soc. Canada 63(6), 275.Google Scholar
Herbig, G. H.: 1977, Astrophys. J. 214, 747.Google Scholar
Horedt, G. P.: 1982, Astron. Astrophys. 106, 29.Google Scholar
Howell, R. R., McCarthy, D. W., and Low, F. J.: 1981, Astrophys. J. 251, L21.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hoyle, F.: 1953, Astrophys. J. 118, 513.Google Scholar
Huang, S. S.: 1977, Revista Mexicana Astron. Astrofiz. 3, Special Issue (IAU Colloq. 33), 175.Google Scholar
Huang, S. S. and Wade, C., Jr.: 1966, Astrophys. J. 143, 146.Google Scholar
Hunter, G.: 1962, Astrophys. J. 136, 594.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hut, P.: 1983, Astrophys. J. 272, L29.Google Scholar
Jaschek, C.: 1976, Astron. Astrophys. 50, 185.Google Scholar
Jaschek, C. and Ferrer, O.: 1972, Pubi. Astron. Soc. Pacific 84, 292.Google Scholar
Jeffers, H. M., van den Bos, W. H., and Greeby, F. M.: 1963, Index Catalogue of Visual Double Stars, Mt. Hamilton, Lick Observatory.Google Scholar
Kraft, R. P.: 1965, Astrophys. J. 142, 681.Google Scholar
Kraicheva, Z. T., Popova, E. L., Tutukov, A. V., and Yungelson, L. R.: 1979, Soviet Astron. 23, 290 and 22, 670.Google Scholar
Kruszewski, A.: 1967, Adv. Astron. Astrophys. 4, 233.Google Scholar
Kuiper, G. P.: 1935, Pubi. Astron. Soc. Pacific 47, 15 and 121.Google Scholar
Kuiper, G. P.: 1955, Pubi. Astron. Soc. Pacific 67, 387.Google Scholar
Kumar, S.: 1972, Astrophys. Space Sci. 17, 453.Google Scholar
Larson, R. B.: 1972, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 156, 437.Google Scholar
Larson, R. B.: 1978, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 184, 69.Google Scholar
Larson, R. B.: 1981, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 194, 809.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Larson, R. B.: 1984, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 206, 197.Google Scholar
Levato, H. and Morrell, N.: 1983, Astrophys. Letters 23, 183.Google Scholar
Lindroos, P.: 1982, The Messenger (ESO) 27, 4.Google Scholar
Lucy, L. B.: 1977, Astron. J. 82, 1013.Google Scholar
Lucy, L. B.: 1981, in Sugimoto, D., Lamb, D. Q., and Schramm, D. N. (eds.), ‘Fundamental Problems in the Theory of Stellar Evolution', IAU Symp. 93, 75.Google Scholar
Lucy, L. B. and Ricco, E.: 1979, Astron J. 84, 401.Google Scholar
Lust, R.: 1952, Z. Naturf. 7a, 87.Google Scholar
Lynden-Bell, D. and Pringle, J.: 1974, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 168, 603.Google Scholar
McAlister, H. A.: 1977, Astrophys. J. 215, 159.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
McAlister, et ai: 1983, Astrophys. J. Suppl. 51, 309.Google Scholar
McCarthy, D. W.: 1982, Astrophys. J. 257, L93.Google Scholar
McCarthy, D. W.: 1983, in Upgren, A. R. (ed.), ‘The Nearby Stars and the Stellar Luminosity Function', IAU Colloq. 76, in press.Google Scholar
McCrea, W. H.: 1956, Astrophys. J. 124, 461.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mestel, L.: 1965, J. Roy. Astron. Soc. 6, 161.Google Scholar
Morgan, B. L., Beddoes, D. R., Dainty, J. V., and Scaddan, R. J.: 1978, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 183, 701.Google Scholar
Mouschovias, T.: 1977, Astrophys. J. 211, 147.Google Scholar
Mouschovias, T.: 1981, in Sugimoto, D., Lamb, D. Q., and Schramm, D. N. (eds.), ‘Fundamental Problems in the Theory of Stellar Evolution', IAU Symp. 93, 27.Google Scholar
Mouschovias, T. and Paleologou, V. E.: 1980, Moon and Planets 22, 31.Google Scholar
Mundt, R., Walter, F. M., Feigelson, E. D., Finkenzeller, U., Herbig, G. H., and Odeli, A. P.: 1983, Astrophys. J. 269, 229.Google Scholar
Norman, M. L.: 1980, Ph.D. Diss., Univ. California at Davis.Google Scholar
Norman, M. L. and Wilson, J. R.: 1978, Astrophys. J. 224, 497.Google Scholar
Ostriker, J. P.: 1964, Astrophys. J. 140, 1067.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Ostriker, J. P.: 1970,in Sletteback, A. (ed.), Stellar Rotations. Reidei Pubi. Co., Dordrecht, Holland, p. 147.Google Scholar
Ostriker, J. P. and Bodenheimer, P.: 1973, Astrophys. J. 180, 171.Google Scholar
Paczyński, B.: 1971, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 9, 183.Google Scholar
Partridge, R. B.: 1967, Astron. J. 72, 713.Google Scholar
Popper, D. M.: 1967, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 5, 85.Google Scholar
Popper, D. M.: 1980, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 18, 115.Google Scholar
Popov, M. V.: 1970, Peremennye Zvezdy 17, 412.Google Scholar
Poveda, A., Allen, C., and Parrao, L.: 1982, Astrophys. J. 258, 589.Google Scholar
Quirk, W. J.: 1973, Bull. Am. Astron. Soc. 5, 9.Google Scholar
Retterer, J. H. and King, I. V.: 1982, Astrophys. J. 254, 214.Google Scholar
Regev, O. and Shaviv, G.: 1981, Astrophys. J. 245, 934.Google Scholar
Rozyczka, M., Tscharnuter, W. M., Winkler, K.-H., and Yorke, H. W.: 1980, Astron. Astrophys. 83, 118.Google Scholar
Salukvadze, G. N.: 1980, Astrofisika 16, 505 and 687.Google Scholar
Schmitz, F.: 1983, Astron. Astrophys. 125, 333.Google Scholar
Silk, J.: 1978, in Gehreis, T. (ed.), Protostars and Planets, University of Arizona Press, p. 172.Google Scholar
Silk, J. and Takahashi, T.: 1979, Astrophys. J. 229, 242.Google Scholar
Shu, F. H. and Lubow, S. H.: 1981, ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 19, 277.Google Scholar
Spitzer, L., Jr. and Mathieu, R. D.: 1980, Astrophys. J. 241, 618.Google Scholar
Staniucha, M.: 1979, Acta Astron. 29, 587.Google Scholar
Stauffer, J. R.: 1982, Astron. J. 87, 1507.Google Scholar
Strittmatter, P. A.: 1981, in Ulrich and Kjar (eds.), The Scientific Importance of High Angular Resolution and Infrared and Optical Wavelengths, ESO Workshop, p. 359.Google Scholar
Szebehely, V.: 1977, Revista Mexicana Astron. Astrofiz. 3, Special Issue (IAU Colloq. 33), 145.Google Scholar
Thomas, H. C.: 1977, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 15, 127.Google Scholar
Tohline, J. E.: 1980, Astrophys. J. 236, 160.Google Scholar
Trimble, V.: 1974, Astron. J. 79, 967.Google Scholar
Trimble, V.: 1978, Observatory 98, 163.Google Scholar
Trimble, V.: 1980, in Hesser, J. E. (ed.), ‘Star Clusters', IAU Symp. 85, 259.Google Scholar
Trimble, V.: 1983, Nature 303, 137.Google Scholar
Trimble, V. and Ostriker, J.: 1978, Astron. Astrophys. 63, 433.Google Scholar
Tscharnuter, W. M.: 1980, Space Sci. Rev. 27, 235.Google Scholar
Tscharnuter, W. M.: 1981, in Sugimoto, D., Lamb, D. Q., and Schramm, D. N. (eds.), ‘Fundamental Problems in the Theory of Stellar Evolution', IAU Symp. 93, 105.Google Scholar
van Albada, T. S. and Blaauw, A.: 1967, in On the Evolution of Double Stars, Observatoire Royal de Belgique, Communications, Ser. B., No. 47, p. 44.Google Scholar
van Albada, T. S.: 1968, Astron. Inst. Neth. 20, 57 and 19, 479.Google Scholar
van Beveren, D.: 1982, Astron. Astrophys. 115, 65.Google Scholar
van de Kamp, P.: 1971, Ann. Rev. Astron. 9, 103.Google Scholar
Vogel, S. N. and Kuhi, L. V.: 1981, Astrophys. J. IAS, 960.Google Scholar
von Hoerner, S.: 1968, in Terzian, Y. (ed.), Interstellar Ionized Hydrogen, Benjamin Inc., New York, p. 101.Google Scholar
von Weizsäcker, C. F.: 1948, Z. Naturf. 3a, 524.Google Scholar
Walmsley, C. M.: 1982, Irish. Astron. J. 15, 161.Google Scholar
Warner, B.: 1962a, Ann. Astrophys. 25, 94.Google Scholar
Warner, B.: 1962b, Pubi. Astron. Soc. Pacific 73, 439.Google Scholar
Webbink, R. F.: 1980, in Plavec, M. J., Popper, D. M., and Ulrich, R. K. (eds.), ‘Close Binary Stars: Observations and Interpretation', IAU Symp. 88, 561.Google Scholar
Weigelt, G. and Wirnitzer, B.: 1983, Optics Letters 8, 389.Google Scholar
Wesson, P. S.: 1979, Astron. Astrophys. 80, 296.Google Scholar
Wolff, S. C., Edwards, S., and Preston, G. W.: 1982, Astrophys. J. 252, 322.Google Scholar
Wood, D.: 1981, Monthly Notices Roy. Astron. Soc. 199, 331.Google Scholar
Woolfson, M. M.: 1978, in Dermott, S. F. (ed.), The Origin of the Solar System, Wiley Pubi., New York. Google Scholar
Worley, Ch. E.: 1969, in Kumar, S. S. (ed.), Low Luminosity Stars, Gordon and Breach, New York, p. 117.Google Scholar
Wynn-Williams, G.: 1982, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys. 20, 587.Google Scholar
Zinnecker, H.: 1981, Ph.D. Diss. Techn. Univ. München, Report MPI-PAE Extraterr. Physik 167.Google Scholar