Binary star is a star system made up of two stars that are orbiting around a common center mass. A binary star can easily appear as two stars orbiting close to each other but in essence, they are separated by a huge distance. One of the stars which appear brighter is referred to as the primary star while the other is called the companion star. Binary star systems can be subdivided into several categories. They include eclipsing binaries, astrometric binaries, visual binaries and spectroscopic binaries.
To start with, visual binaries can be detected using direct means while spectroscopic binaries can only be detected through indirect means. Visual binaries are those systems where two different stars can be seen using a telescope which has enough resolving power. However, most visual binaries usually have orbits that are hard to detect or appear to be uncertain (Seeds, Backman, 2009). This is as a result of their long orbital periods made up many centuries or a case where one stay is very bright such that it blots out the other star. On the other hand, spectroscopic binaries are systems where stars are close to each other and orbit at a high speed. They can also be determined where a continuous spectrum is distorted thus implying the presence of a second star.
Binary systems are crucial to astronomers because calculating their orbits enables the determination of the mass each star. When the mass of an individual star is directly determined, other parameter like their radius and density can be estimated indirectly. Moreover, this will measure the empirical mass-luminosity (MLR) where the relative mass of a single star is estimated (Seeds, Backman, 2009)
To start with, visual binaries can be detected using direct means while spectroscopic binaries can only be detected through indirect means. Visual binaries are those systems where two different stars can be seen using a telescope which has enough resolving power. However, most visual binaries usually have orbits that are hard to detect or appear to be uncertain (Seeds, Backman, 2009). This is as a result of their long orbital periods made up many centuries or a case where one stay is very bright such that it blots out the other star. On the other hand, spectroscopic binaries are systems where stars are close to each other and orbit at a high speed. They can also be determined where a continuous spectrum is distorted thus implying the presence of a second star.
Binary systems are crucial to astronomers because calculating their orbits enables the determination of the mass each star. When the mass of an individual star is directly determined, other parameter like their radius and density can be estimated indirectly. Moreover, this will measure the empirical mass-luminosity (MLR) where the relative mass of a single star is estimated (Seeds, Backman, 2009)
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