Spectroscopic study of the eclipsing system R canis majoris

Variation of the residual intensities of metallic and hydrogen lines of R CMa with phase is presented from measurement of its spectrograms obtained with dispersions of 10.3 Å/mm and 4.1 Å/mm at the Okayama Astrophysical Observatory. It is found from variation of the residual intensities of these lines, with the exception of the Ca–K line, that the duration of the eclipse is longer than expected from the photometric elements. The fractional loss of light of the eclipsed component at mid-eclipse has been derived from the ratio between residual intensities of the lines at mid-minimum and outside eclipse. The value so deduced is found to be larger than expected from the light-curve analysis. The behaviour of the residual intensities of the K line around the mid-minimum provides some evidence of emission at the line center. The possible existence of gaseous matter surrounding the components is discussed.Presented at the Trieste Colloquium on Mass Loss from Stars, September 12–16, 1968.