AAS 199th meeting, Washington, DC, January 2002
Session 6. Binary Stars
Display, Monday, January 7, 2002, 9:20am-6:30pm, Exhibit Hall

[6.13] Spectroscopy of the temporal variations of \alpha Vir

R. L. Riddle (Iowa State University), W. G. Bagnuolo, D. R. Gies (Georgia State University)

\alpha Vir (HD 116658) is one of the closest massive binary stars to the Sun, so it has been the focus of numerous studies over the years. However, even with all that attention, there are still questions about the spectral types of the two stars in the system. The system has also demonstrated variability; oscillations of \alpha Vir have been measured in the past (though they slowly disappeared), and the system is one of a handful to display the Struve-Sahade Effect. The SSE is characterized by a change in strength of the spectral lines of the secondary, where the lines are stronger when the secondary is approaching the observer than when moving away.

Here we present a recent medium resolution, high SNR spectroscopy study of \alpha Vir. We present our determination of the spectral typing of the system through a tomographic separation of the binary spectra into the spectrum of each star. We also examine the characteristics of the interactions between the stars, the presence of the SSE, and comment on the possibility of pulsations in the primary.