WR 135

WR 135
Observation data
Epoch J2000      Equinox J2000
Constellation Cygnus
Right ascension 20h 11m 53.52729s[1]
Declination 36° 11′ 50.5323″[1]
Apparent magnitude (V) 8.11[2] (8.06 - 8.16[3])
Characteristics
Evolutionary stage Wolf-Rayet
Spectral type WC8[4]
U−B color index −0.36[2]
B−V color index +0.02[2]
Variable type WR[3]
Astrometry
Proper motion (μ) RA: −2.635[5] mas/yr
Dec.: −6.081[5] mas/yr
Parallax (π)0.4746 ± 0.0326 mas[5]
Distance1,980+180
−150[6] pc
Absolute magnitude (MV)–4.78[4]
Details
Mass13.6[4] M☉
Radius4.24[4] R☉
Luminosity250,000[4] L☉
Temperature63,000[4] K
Other designations
V1042 Cygni, WR 135, HD 192103, HIP 99525, BD+35°4013, CCDM J20119+3612, WDS J20119+3612
Database references
SIMBADdata

WR 135 is a variable Wolf-Rayet star located around 6,000 light years away from Earth in the constellation of Cygnus, surrounded by a faint bubble nebula blown by the intense radiation and fast wind from the star. It is just over four times the radius of the sun, but due to a temperature of 63,000 K it is 250,000 times as luminous as the sun.

WR 135, together with WR 134 and WR 137, was one of three stars in Cygnus observed in 1867 to have unusual spectra consisting of intense emission lines rather than the more normal continuum and absorption lines. These were the first members of the class of stars that came to be called Wolf-Rayet stars (WR stars) after Charles Wolf and Georges Rayet who discovered their unusual appearance.[7] It is a member of the carbon sequence of WR stars, indicated by the lack of nitrogen lines and the strength of carbon emission. WR 135 has a spectrum with CIII emission slightly stronger than CIV, leading to the assignment of a WC8 spectral type. The spectrum also shows strong HeI emission and weaker lines of HeII and CII.[8]

WR 135 is less than a degree away from WR 134 and the two are believed to lie at approximately the same distance from Earth within the Cygnus OB3 association.[9] Both stars lie within a shell of hydrogen thought to have been swept up from the interstellar medium when one or both stars were on the main sequence. The shell is over forty parsecs wide and contains about 1,830 M☉ of hydrogen. It is unclear which of the two stars is primarily responsible for creating the shell.[10]

WR 135 has two close companions. HD 228235 is an 11th magnitude star 53" away and there is also a 12th magnitude star 41" away.[11]

  1. ^ a b Van Leeuwen, F. (2007). "Validation of the new Hipparcos reduction". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 474 (2): 653–664. arXiv:0708.1752. Bibcode:2007A&A...474..653V. doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20078357. S2CID 18759600.
  2. ^ a b c Ducati, J. R. (2002). "VizieR Online Data Catalog: Catalogue of Stellar Photometry in Johnson's 11-color system". CDS/ADC Collection of Electronic Catalogues. 2237. Bibcode:2002yCat.2237....0D.
  3. ^ a b Samus, N. N.; Durlevich, O. V.; et al. (2009). "VizieR Online Data Catalog: General Catalogue of Variable Stars (Samus+ 2007-2013)". VizieR On-line Data Catalog: B/GCVS. Originally Published in: 2009yCat....102025S. 1. Bibcode:2009yCat....102025S.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Sander, A.; Hamann, W.-R.; Todt, H. (2012). "The Galactic WC stars. Stellar parameters from spectral analyses indicate a new evolutionary sequence". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 540: A144. arXiv:1201.6354. Bibcode:2012A&A...540A.144S. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201117830. S2CID 119182468.
  5. ^ a b c Brown, A. G. A.; et al. (Gaia collaboration) (August 2018). "Gaia Data Release 2: Summary of the contents and survey properties". Astronomy & Astrophysics. 616. A1. arXiv:1804.09365. Bibcode:2018A&A...616A...1G. doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201833051. Gaia DR2 record for this source at VizieR.
  6. ^ Crowther, Paul A.; Rate, Gemma (2020). "Unlocking Galactic Wolf–Rayet stars with Gaia DR2 – I. Distances and absolute magnitudes". Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society. 493 (1): 1512–1529. arXiv:1912.10125. Bibcode:2020MNRAS.493.1512R. doi:10.1093/mnras/stz3614. S2CID 209444955.
  7. ^ Murdin, P. (2001). "Wolf, Charles J E (1827-1918)". The Encyclopedia of Astronomy and Astrophysics. p. 4101. Bibcode:2000eaa..bookE4101.. doi:10.1888/0333750888/4101. ISBN 0333750888.
  8. ^ Hiltner, W. A.; Schild, R. E. (1966). "Spectral Classification of Wolf-Rayet Stars". Astrophysical Journal. 143: 770. Bibcode:1966ApJ...143..770H. doi:10.1086/148556.
  9. ^ Gervais, Simon; St-Louis, Nicole (1999). "A Large H I Shell surrounding the Wolf-Rayet Star HD 191765". The Astronomical Journal. 118 (5): 2394. Bibcode:1999AJ....118.2394G. doi:10.1086/301065.
  10. ^ Sitnik, T. G.; Lozinskaya, T. A. (2009). "Structure and kinematics of the interstellar medium around WR 134 and WR 135". Astronomy Letters. 35 (2): 121. Bibcode:2009AstL...35..121S. doi:10.1134/S1063773709020066. S2CID 122124788.
  11. ^ Mason, Brian D.; Wycoff, Gary L.; Hartkopf, William I.; Douglass, Geoffrey G.; Worley, Charles E. (2001). "The 2001 US Naval Observatory Double Star CD-ROM. I. The Washington Double Star Catalog". The Astronomical Journal. 122 (6): 3466. Bibcode:2001AJ....122.3466M. doi:10.1086/323920.