The Araucaria Project: High-precision orbital parallax and masses of the eclipsing binary TZ Fornacis^⋆,⋆⋆

¹ Universidad de ConcepciónDepartamento de Astronomía, Casilla 160-C, Concepción, Chile
e-mail: agallenne@astro-udec.cl
² European Southern Observatory, Alonso de Córdova 3107, Casilla 19001, Santiago 19, Chile
³ Warsaw University Observatory, Al. Ujazdowskie 4, 00-478 Warsaw, Poland
⁴ Millenium Institute of Astrophysics, Av. Vicuña Mackenna 4860 Santiago, Chile
⁵ LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, CNRS UMR 8109, UPMC, Université Paris Diderot, 5 Place Jules Janssen, 92195 Meudon, France
⁶ Unidad Mixta Internacional Franco-Chilena de Astronomía, CNRS/INSU (UMI 3386), France
⁷ Departamento de Astronomía, Universidad de Chile, Camino El Observatorio 1515, Las Condes, 1058 Santiago, Chile
⁸ Department of Physics and Astronomy, Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
⁹ Département d’Astronomie, Université de Genève, 51 Ch. des Maillettes, 1290 Sauverny, Switzerland

Received: 16 June 2015
Accepted: 13 November 2015

Abstract

Context. Independent distance estimates are particularly useful to check the precision of other distance indicators, while accurate and precise masses are necessary to constrain evolution models.

Aims. The goal is to measure the masses and distance of the detached eclipsing-binary TZ For with a precision level lower than 1% using a fully geometrical and empirical method.

Methods. We obtained the first interferometric observations of TZ For with the VLTI/PIONIER combiner, which we combined with new and precise radial velocity measurements to derive its three-dimensional orbit, masses, and distance.

Results. The system is well resolved by PIONIER at each observing epoch, which allowed a combined fit with eleven astrometric positions. Our derived values are in a good agreement with previous work, but with an improved precision. We measured the mass of both components to be M₁ = 2.057 ± 0.001 M_⊙ and M₂ = 1.958 ± 0.001 M_⊙. The comparison with stellar evolution models gives an age of the system of 1.20 ± 0.10 Gyr. We also derived the distance to the system with a precision level of 1.1%: d = 185.9 ± 1.9 pc. Such precise and accurate geometrical distances to eclipsing binaries provide a unique opportunity to test the absolute calibration of the surface brightness-colour relation for late-type stars, and will also provide the best opportunity to check on the future Gaia measurements for possible systematic errors.