# A Possible Period for the K-Band Brightening Episodes of GX 17+2

Article (PDF Available)inThe Astrophysical Journal 701(2):L110 · August 2009with12 Reads
DOI: 10.1088/0004-637X/701/2/L110 · Source: arXiv
Abstract
The low mass X-ray binary and Z source GX 17+2 undergoes infrared K-band brightening episodes of at least 3.5 magnitudes. The source of these episodes is not known. Prior published K-band magnitudes and new K-band measurements acquired between 2006 and 2008 suggest that the episodes last at least 4 hours and have a period of 3.01254 $\pm$ 0.00002 days. Future bright episodes can be predicted using the ephemeris JD_{max} (n) = 2454550.79829 + (3.01254 $\pm$ 0.00002)(n) days. A growing body of evidence suggests that the GX 17+2 could have a synchrotron jet, which could cause this activity.

# Figures

arXiv:0907.4348v1 [astro-ph.SR] 24 Jul 2009
A Possible Period for the K-band Brightening Episodes of GX 17+2
Jillian Bornak
1
, Bernard J. McNamara
1
, Thomas E. Harrison
1
, Michael P. Rupen
2
, Reba M.
Bandyopadhyay
3
, Stefanie Wachter
4
ABSTRACT
The low mass X-ray binary and Z source GX 17+2 undergoes infrared K-band
brightening episodes of at least 3.5 magnitudes. The source of these ep isodes is not
known. Prior published K-band magnitudes and new K-band measurements acquired
between 2006 and 2008 suggest that the episodes last at least 4 hours and have a period
of 3.01254 ± 0.00002 days. Future bright episodes can be predicted using the ephemeris
JD
max
(n) = 2454550.79829 + (3.01254 ± 0.00002)(n) days. A growing body of evidence
suggests that the GX 17+2 could have a synchr otron jet, which could cause this activity.
Subject headings: radiation mechanisms: non-thermal stars: neutron X-rays:
binaries stars: individual (GX 17+2) ISM: Jets and Outﬂows
1. Introduction
The low mass X-ray b inary (LMXB) GX 17+2 is one of the brightest persistent X-ray sources
in the sky and its high energy behavior has been extensively monitored by X-ray satellites. I t is
one of only eight objects known as Z sources, so-called for the track they trace ou t in an X-ray
color-color diagram. Z sources are thought to be neutron star binaries accreting near or at the
Eddington rate, and position along the Z is thought to reﬂect a change in mass accretion rate.
1
Department of Astronomy, New Mexico State University, 1320 Frenger Mall, Las Cruces, N M 88003; jbor-
nak@nmsu.edu, bmcnamar@nmsu.edu, tharriso@nmsu.edu
2
NRAO, 1003 Lopezville Road, Socorro, NM 87801; mrupen@aoc.nrao.edu
3
Department of Astronomy, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611; reba@astro.uﬂ.edu
4
Spitzer Science Center, Caltech M/S 220-6, 1200 E. California Blvd., Pasadena, CA 91125;
wachter@ipac.caltech.edu
Visiting astronomer, Kitt Peak National Observatory, National Optical Astronomy Observatory, which is op erated
by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under cooperative agreement with the National
Science Foundation
Visiting astronomer, Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory, National Optical Astronomy Observatory, which
is operated by the Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA) under co operative agreement with
the National Science Foundation
2
The radio emission of GX 17+2 is already known to be connected with position in this diagram
(Penninx et al. 1988; Migliari et al. 2007). Associating the multiwavelength behavior of a LMXB
with its Z position provides an excellent way in which to test theoretical models of these systems
(Psaltis et al. 1995).
In contrast to the well-studied X-ray emission from GX 17+2, relatively little is known about
this object’s optical/infrared counterpart (Davidsen et al. 1976; Naylor et al. 1991; Deutsch et al.
1999). It was only recently that Callanan et al. (2002) determined the IR counterpart of GX
17+2 is blended with a G type eld star 0.9” away, w hich was erroneously given the variable
star name NP Ser. These authors also obs erved a remarkable 3.5 mag diﬀerence between their
two K-band observations. The underlying cause of these bright episodes r emains a mystery. The
X-ray data of GX 17+2, extending back to the early 1980s, d o not show any evidence for eclips-
ing or dip ping behavior, so these phenomena cannot be responsible for the variable IR emission
(Kuulkers et al. 1997; Penninx et al. 1988; Homan et al. 2002). The IR and soft X-ray uxes also
do not appear to be correlated, making it unlikely that they arise from the reprocessing of X-rays
in an accretion disk surrounding the system’s neutron star or on the surface of the donor star
(Bandyopadhyay et al. 2002). Finally, free-free emission from an X-ray driven wind would also
produce a correlation between the X-ray an d IR emission; therefore, this p rocess appears to be
ruled out as well (Callanan et al. 2002).
Some attempts have been made to explain the perplexing nature of the GX 17+2 K-band bright
episodes, but they are based on very few measurements. Bandyopadhyay et al. (2002) used the Ohio
State I nfrared IMager/Spectrometer on the Perkins 1.8m telescope at the Lowell Observatory to
obtain eighteen K-band magnitudes of the blended image of GX 17+2/NP Ser between July 16
and August 20, 1997. These magnitudes were compared to RXTE All-Sky-Monitor (ASM) one-day
average X-ray ﬂu x measurements to determine whether they are connected, bu t no correlations
were found. These K-band magnitudes and several hundred days of ASM data were then used to
conduct a search for periods between 4 and 200 days. No periodic behavior was found.
The study by (Callanan et al. 2002) used four K-band measurements, only one of which was
obtained during an IR bright episode. Callanan et al. (2002) argue the case for a j et interpretation
for GX 17+2. They note that the levels of th e r ad io and K-band variability in GX 17+2 are
comparable suggesting that they have a common origin and that, if an optically thick synchrotron
power law index is assumed, an extrapolation of the maximu m GX 17+2 radio ux density predicts
a peak magnitude of K = 14. This is close to the observed value that GX 17+2 reaches during an
IR br ight state. Additionally, Russell et al. (2007) supports the idea that the GX 17+2 K-band
bright episodes are related to the presence of a jet. Based on an examination of 19 low magnetic
ﬁeld neutron star binaries, they conclude that jets are necessary to explain the quasi-simultaneous
optical/IR/X-ray emission from high luminosity systems such as GX 17+2.
The fact that GX 17+2 is a Z-source might allow studies of its X-ray/IR behavior to further
our understanding of the multi-wavelength emission processes operating in other peculiar LMXBs.
3
The unusual nature of the IR emission from GX 17+2 and its very limited observational data base
led u s to conduct a multi-year campaign to better quantify its K-band properties. In this Letter we
present the ﬁrst evidence that the IR b right episodes of GX 17+2 last at least 4 hours and r epeat
with a period of 3.01245 days. We also ﬁnd that the shape of this system’s K-band light curve and
its peak brightness are highly variable.
2. Observations and Data Reduction
This study is based on new K-band measurements of GX 17+2 acquired between July 2006
and July 2009 as listed in Table 2. Measurements were obtained at the Astrophysical Research
Consortium’s Apache Peak Observatory (APO), and at the National Optical Astronomy Observa-
tory’s Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO). Additionally, we had 102 nights of u npublished
observations at the Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory (CTIO). The K-band photometry of
GX 17+2 reported by Callanan et al. (2002) and Bandyopadhyay et al. (2002) were also used, as
well as a Spitzer MIPS 24 µm observation (Wachter 2009).
K-band photometry was obtained in 2006 on the nights of UT July 1, 12, 14 and in 2009 on
the night of UT July 1 using the Near-Infrared Camera and Fabry-Perot Spectrometer (NICFPS)
1
on the APO 3.5 meter telescope. NICFPS has a 0.273 arcsec/pixel scale, giving a 4.58 arcmin
square ﬁeld of view. Exposures were 8s and a ﬁve point dither pattern was used . While NICFPS is
capable of resolving GX 17+2 from NP Ser, poor seeing p revented us from doing so. On October 4,
2007 GX 17+2 was observed using the C ornell Massachusetts Slit Spectrograph (CorMASS) in slit
view mode. CorMASS is a 256x256 pixel detector with a scale of 0.375 arcsec/pixel in slit mode
giving a 1.6 arcmin square ﬁeld of view.
GX 17+2 was observed in 2007 from May 25 to 30 an d in 2008 on July 8 and 13 with the
Simultaneous Quad Infrared Imaging Device (S QIID)
2
on th e KPNO 2.1m telescope. SQIID si-
multaneously collects data in the JHK lters. SQIID has a scale of 0.69 arcsec/pixel providing a
roughly 5 arcmin square ﬁeld of view. O n these images GX 17+2 is blended with the image of
NP Ser. The data were taken with 8s exposur es using a two point d ither co-adding six images per
dither position for 2006 and a ve point dither co-adding eight images per dither position for 2007.
The above datasets were an alyzed using standard I R AF
3
reduction routines. Aperture photom-
etry was performed on the blend of GX 17+2 and NP Ser and relative photometry was performed
with respect to four bright ﬁeld stars, whose K-band magnitudes were taken from 2MASS Point
Source Catalog. Dome ﬂats were used for ﬂat elds and the dithered images were median combined
1
http://www.apo.nmsu.edu/arc35m/Instruments/NICFPS/
2
http://www.noao.edu/kpno/sqiid/
3
IRAF is distributed by th e NOAO, which is operated by AURA under cooperative agreement with the NS F.
4
to create sky images. Flat-ﬁelded and sky subtracted images for each position in the dither were
then combined to increase th e S/N. Except for the extra care needed to select uncontaminated
calibration stars in the crowded region of GX 17+2, no unusual reduction issues were encountered.
CTIO K-band measurements of GX 17+2 were obtained during 51 nights in 2001 extending
from March 1 to Ju ne 9 and for 51 nights in 2007 from March 15 to July 11 with A Novel Dual
Imaging CAMera (ANDICAM)
4
on the 1.3m telescope op erated by the Small and Moderate Aper-
ture Research Telescope System (SMARTS) consortium. ANDICAM has a 0.369 arcsec/pixel scale
giving a 6.29 arcmin square ﬁeld of view. The 2001 data were taken with 30s exposures and a seven
point dither co-adding two images per dither position, and the 2007 have 60s exposures and a ﬁve
point dither pattern.
The red uction of the SMARTS data sets was considerably more challenging. The K-band
images possess a variable fringing pattern that cannot be totally removed. Therefore, although th e
formal K-band measurement errors were ±0.07 mag, the transient noise pattern problem produced
unreliable photometry for sources as faint as NP Ser and GX 17+2. Therefore, these data were not
included in our period-searching analysis.
Unfortunately, the position of GX 17+2 along its Z was unkn own during the IR bright observa-
tions. X-ray data was taken an hour after the 2006 July 12 ob s ervation with the Rossi X-ray Timing
Explorer (RXTE)
5
satellite’s Proportional Counter Arr ay (PCA), where GX 17+2 was found to
be on the Normal Branch (McNamara et al. 2009, in prep.). Even though we have simultaneous
RXTE ASM data for our observations, we cannot recover the Z position d ue to the low X-ray ux
and the resultant uncertainties.
3. The K-band Period Search
Table 1 lists the six dates when a bright K-band episode of GX 17+2 was detected. During
four of the observing sessions at the APO and KPNO, light curves extendin g for approximately
4 hours were acquired, as shown in Figure 1. The 2007-10-04 entry in Table 1 refers to the APO
CorMass detection during which only four short exposures were obtained; the 1999-06-26 entry
refers to the IR bright observation by Callanan et al. (2002); and the 2008-10-21 entry refers to
a Spitzer MIPS 24 µm observation (Wachter 2009). These three observations are single images
rather than full light curves, and so the time of observation is shown rather than the time of peak
IR brightness. The estimated times given in Table 1 for the center of the bright period are much
more uncertain than the size of the given heliocentric correction.
The extent of a GX 17+2 bright episod e is deﬁned as the time interval during which the GX
4
http://www.astronomy.ohio-state.edu/ANDICAM/detectors.html
5
http://heasarc.gsfc.nasa.gov/docs/xte/rxte.html
5
17+2 and NP Ser blended image had a K-band magnitude b righter than 14.5 (see Callanan et al.
2002 for measurements of NP Ser). An entire bright ep isode is not covered by any of our light
curves, but our longest-duration light curve shows it can last for at least four hours (see Figure
1). The diﬀering shapes of these light curves pose obvious problems f or th e determination of any
periodicity. First, the variety in shape does not permit the light curves to be folded as is done to
determine the period of an eclipsing system. Secondly, the maximum K-band magnitude from one
bright episode to another is not a constant. As shown in Table 1, the peak magnitude can vary by
at least ±0.28 magnitudes. These two properties do not allow snap-shot K-ban d magnitudes to be
associated with a particular phase.
Given the above limitations, the follow ing procedure was used to determine the perio d of the
IR bright episodes of GX 17+2. The KPNO observations of two IR bright light curves (middle
two curves shown in Figure 1) were separated by about three days. Observations prior to and
between these two IR bright times showed GX 17+2 persistently faint, implying a three day period.
Therefore, a grid of phase points was constructed for candidate periods between 2.8 days and 3.2
days for the times during J uly 2006 and May 2007 listed in Table 1. The Callanan et al. (2002)
observation was not used in this analysis step. The standard deviation of the ﬁve phase points at
each epoch was plotted versus period. This is shown in the top panel of Figure 2. If the system’s
IR bright episodes are periodic, each of the times in Table 1 should have nearly the same phase.
This would then produce a minimum in this ﬁgure. In a system whose period is days long, 1-2 hour
uncertainties in the mid points of the IR bright times will broaden this minimum. The r esult of
this computation indicates that the IR bright episodes of GX 17+2 have a period of about 3.012
days.
To better deﬁne this value, the bright Callanan et al. (2002) K-band observation of GX 17+2
was then included (see their Figure 1), and the above procedure was r epeated. A ﬁner grid step
in period was used and the searched interval was reduced to 3.0 to 3.1 day s . The resu lts of this
exercise are shown in Figure 2 (bottom). The minimum dispersion is located at a period of 3.01254
± 0.00002 days. The dates of our observations were constrained by the small wind ow in which GX
17+2 was visible f rom APO and KP NO . Th e fact th at our observations were taken nearly the same
time each year causes the multi-cusp pattern in the bottom of Figure 2.
The validity of our period was tested in three diﬀerent ways. First, to test th e rob ustness of
the period, the center of the bright episode times in Table 1 were randomly changed by 1-2 hours.
The period was then r ecomputed using the above procedure. Second, the period was calculated
using the time when the system’s brightness stopped its rise. For the ﬁrst two tests, the derived
period changed by less than 0.00002 days. Lastly, since this period was initially computed using
only the July 2006 and May 2007 data, the ephemeris was used to predict IR bright and faint
episodes in October 2007, July 2008, and July 2009. The observations of GX 17+2 in IR bright
and IR faint states conﬁrmed our perio d and eliminated the possibility of any aliasing. The period
calculation was then redone with the additional times in cluded , and we ﬁnd that this period was
consistent with all of our APO and KPNO non-detections.
6
We also attempted to use the K-band observations reported by Bandyopadhyay et al. (2002)
as a test. None of the SMARTS observations corresponded to an IR bright time, and no deﬁnitive
bright episo des were detected in that study. This result agrees with the brightening period suggested
in this Letter. Based on the KPNO, APO, and Keck data the eph emeris of the GX 17+2 IR b right
episodes is JD
max
(n) = 2454550.79829 + 3.01254(n) ± 0.00002 days.
4. Discussion
We have presented the rst evidence that the K-band brightening episodes of GX 17+2 are
periodic and that its IR light cu rve and m aximum brightness vary from event to event. Although
this result is consistent with all of our K-band data, we would like to emphasize that additional
observations are clearly desirable to conﬁrm the nature of these IR bright episodes and to better
quantify the structure of the K-band light curve. As mentioned in the p rior sections, although
several mechanisms have been ruled out as the likely source for the IR bright episodes in GX 17+2,
their origin remains a mystery. The data collected for this study is not adequate to answer this
question. However, we oﬀer the f ollowing comments.
Migliari et al. (2007) interpret the correlated radio and X-ray ﬂuctuations of GX 17+2 as
suggestive of a compact jet. These authors showed that the peak radio ux of GX 17+2 at 4.8 and
8.4 GHz varied smoothly with the location in the Z plot. Maximum ﬂuxes of 3 mJy and 0.4 mJy,
respectively, were found when this system was on its horizontal branch. Contemporaneous RXTE
PCA data with our K-band bright episode of 2006 July 12 suggest that GX 17+2 was on its normal
branch (McNamara et al. 2009, in prep.). VLA observations obtained ﬁve hours after the IR peak
had ﬂuxes of 7 mJy and 4.4 mJy at 4.8 and 8.4 GHz, respectively. These are the highest ﬂux levels
ever observed for this system at these frequencies. The correlation between GX 17+2’s radio and
IR emission suggests the presence of a synchrotron jet.
The lack of a periodicity in the RXTE ASM soft X-ray data can be explained if the j et is
responsible for only a small amount of the soft X-ray ﬂux. T he periodic signal would then be lost
in the stronger X-ray emission from the accretion process. That GX 17+2 was detected at a ﬂux
of 10 mJy at 24 µm supports this interpretation, for neither donor star nor accretion disk would
contribute to the emission at that wavelength. For example, STAR-PET
6
predicts a 24 µm ﬂux of
0.011 mJy for NP Ser.
Assuming our interpretation of a j et is correct, one could ask whether this periodic IR ac-
tivity represents the orbital period of an eccentric binary, with the jet turning on at periastron
as used to explain Cir X-1, or whether it represents the precession period of the jet. However,
periastron passage implies an eccentric orbit. GX 17+2 is a persistent X-ray source, as are all the
Z s ources. C ontinuous accretion by Roche lobe overﬂow requires these systems to have circular or-
6
http://ssc.spitzer.caltech.edu/tools/starpet/
7
bits. Therefore, we believe our observations support the possibility of GX 17+2 h aving a precessing
synchrotron jet, making GX 17+2 an obvious choice for a future s imultaneous multi-wavelength
studies.
This material is based upon work supported by the National Aeronautics and Sp ace Admin-
istration under Proposal No. 92042 issu ed through the Science Mission Directorate. Support for
this work was also provided by the New Mexico Space Grant Consortium, and the New Mex-
ico Higher Education Department. Results pr ovided by the ASM/RXTE teams at MIT and at
the RXTE SOF and GOF at NASA’s GSFC, by the National Optical Astronomy Ob servatory
(NOAO)/Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA)/National Science Foun-
dation (NSF), and based on observations obtained with the Apache Point Observatory 3.5-meter
telescope, which is owned and operated by the Astrophysical Research Consortium. Th is research
has m ade use of the NASA/ IPAC Infrared Science Archive, which is operated by the Jet Propulsion
Laboratory, California Institute of Technology, under contract with the National Aeronautics and
Space Administration.
Facilities: RXTE, CTIO:1.3m, KPNO:2.1m, APO:3.5m, VLA.
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This preprint was prepared with the AAS L
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Table 1. GX 17+2 K-Band Bright Episode Midpoint Times
Date JD Hel.Cor. (days) Peak K mag
a
Duration (hours) Site
1999-06-26
1
2451355.9740 0.0058 13.98 Single Keck
2006-07-12 2453928.7250 0.0056 13.91 2.5 APO
2007-05-27 2454247.9333 0.0051 14.01 3.2 KPNO
2007-05-30 2454250.9375 0.0052 13.83 4.2 KPNO
2007-10-04 2454377.5875 0.0006 14.05 0.2 APO
2008-07-13 2454660.7983 0.0056 13.91 2.8 KPNO
2008-10-21
2
2454760.7592 0.0023 - Single Spitzer
2009-07-01 2455013.7484 0.0057 14.30 2.5 APO
a
Magnitudes reported are of the blend of GX 17+2 and NP Ser.
1
Callanan et al. (2002)
2
Wachter (2009)
Table 2. GX 17+2 Observation Information
Date Duration (hours) IR State Instrument Site
2006-07-01 2.5 Faint NICFPS APO
2006-07-12 2.5 Bright NICFPS APO
2006-07-14 2.5 Faint NICFPS APO
2007-05-25 4.2 Faint SQIID KPNO
2007-05-26 4.2 Faint SQIID KPNO
2007-05-27 4.2 Bright SQIID KPNO
2007-05-28 4.2 Faint SQIID KPNO
2007-05-29 4.2 Faint SQIID KPNO
2007-05-30 4.2 Bright SQIID KPNO
2007-10-04 0.2 Bright CorMASS APO
2008-07-08 2.8 Faint SQIID KPNO
2008-07-13 2.8 Bright SQIID KPNO
2008-10-21 Single Bright IRAC Spitzer
2009-07-01 2.5 Bright NICFPS APO
10
Fig. 1.— K-band light curves for the blend of NP Ser and GX 17+2 are shown with 1σ error bars.
The blend is sh own clearly brighter than the K magnitude of NP Ser as measured by Callanan et al.
(2002), indicated with a solid line in each pan el. The shapes and peak levels of an IR bright episode
vary, making a unifying folded light curve impractical.
11
Fig. 2.— Period vs. th e dispersion in phase for the times when GX 17+2 was IR bright. The top
ﬁgure includ es bright episode times listed in Table 1 between 2006 and 2008. Th e bottom ﬁgure
includes the bright episode reported by Callanan et al. (2002) for June 1999. The minimum s hown
in the bottom ﬁgure corresponds to the period when the dispersion in the bright time phases was
at its minimum. This occurs at a period of 3.01245 days. The multi-cusp pattern in the bottom
ﬁgure (and present but not visible in the top ﬁgure) is due to our d ata having been taken at nearly
the same time each year.
• ##### Spitzer Observations of GX17+2: Confirmation of a Periodic Synchrotron Source
[Show abstract] [Hide abstract] ABSTRACT: GX17+2 is a low-mass X-ray binary (LMXB) that is also a member of a small family of LMXBs known as "Z-sources" that are believed to have persistent X-ray luminosities that are very close to the Eddington limit. GX17+2 is highly variable at both radio and X-ray frequencies, a feature common to Z-sources. What sets GX17+2 apart is its dramatic variability in the near-infrared, where it changes by ΔK ~ 3 mag. Previous investigations have shown that these brightenings are periodic, recurring every 3.01 days. Given its high extinction (A V ≥ 9 mag), it has not been possible to ascertain the nature of these events with ground-based observations. We report mid-infrared Spitzer observations of GX17+2 which indicate a synchrotron spectrum for the infrared brightenings. In addition, GX17+2 is highly variable in the mid-infrared during these events. The combination of the large-scale outbursts, the presence of a synchrotron spectrum, and the dramatic variability in the mid-infrared suggest that the infrared brightening events are due to the periodic transit of a synchrotron jet across our line of sight. An analysis of both new, and archival, infrared observations has led us to revise the period for these events to 3.0367 days. We also present new Rossi X-Ray Timing Explorer (RXTE) data for GX17+2 obtained during two predicted infrared brightening events. Analysis of these new data, and data from the RXTE archive, indicates that there is no correlation between the X-ray behavior of this source and the observed infrared brightenings. We examine various scenarios that might produce periodic jet emission.
Full-text · Article · Jul 2011