A publishing partnership

Hypervelocity Binary Stars: Smoking Gun of Massive Binary Black Holes

, , and

Published 2007 August 23 © 2007. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved. Printed in U.S.A.
, , Citation Youjun Lu et al 2007 ApJ 666 L89 DOI 10.1086/521708

1538-4357/666/2/L89

Abstract

The hypervelocity stars recently found in the Galactic halo are expelled from the Galactic center through interactions between binary stars and the central massive black hole or between single stars and a hypothetical massive binary black hole. In this Letter, we demonstrate that binary stars can be ejected out of the Galactic center with velocities up to 103 km s-1, while preserving their integrity, through interactions with a massive binary black hole. Binary stars are unlikely to attain such high velocities via scattering by a single massive black hole or through any other mechanisms. On the basis of the above theoretical prediction, we propose a search for binary systems among the hypervelocity stars. Discovery of hypervelocity binary stars, even one, is definitive evidence of the existence of a massive binary black hole in the Galactic center.

Export citation and abstract BibTeX RIS

Please wait… references are loading.
10.1086/521708