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L. A. Lopez, H. L. Marshall, J. F. Kane, N. S. Schulz, C. R. Canizares (MIT CSR)
We test the physical model of the relativistic jets in the galactic X-ray binary SS 433 that was proposed by Marshall, Canizares, and Schulz (Paper I: 2002, ApJ, 564, 941) using additional observations from the Chandra High Energy Transmission Grating Spectrometer. These observations sample two new orbital/precessional phase combinations. The physical model of the X-ray spectrum from one of the observations shows the low energy portion of the receding jet is eclipsed by the companion. The observation has broader emission lines than previously detected and indicates a jet opening half-angle of 1.35±0.16 degrees, double the original Paper I result of 0.61± 0.03 degrees. The factor of two increase is evidence the jet origin may be eight times closer to the compact object. Using optical results presented by Gies, Huang, and McSwain (2002, ApJ, 578, L67), along with the length of the jets determined with the physical model of the X-ray spectrum, we calculate the radius of the companion to be 9.6±0.9 solar radii, one third of the Roche lobe radius. For a main sequence star, this result corresponds to a companion mass of 33±9 solar masses, giving a primary source mass of 19±5 solar masses. This calculation provides solid evidence that the compact object is a black hole. This work was supported by NASA through contract NAS8-01129.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: lalopez@mit.edu
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 35#5
© 2003. The American Astronomical Soceity.