DYNAMICAL MASSES OF YOUNG STARS. I. DISCORDANT MODEL AGES OF UPPER SCORPIUS

Abstract

ABSTRACT We present the results of a long-term orbit monitoring program, using sparse aperture masking observations taken with NIRC2 on the Keck-II telescope, of seven G- to M-type members of the Upper Scorpius subgroup of the Sco–Cen OB association. We present astrometry and derived orbital elements of the binary systems we have monitored, and also determine the age, component masses, distance, and reddening for each system using the orbital solutions and multi-band photometry, including Hubble Space Telescope photometry, and a Bayesian fitting procedure. We find that the models can be forced into agreement with any individual system by assuming an age, but that age is not consistent across the mass range of our sample. The G-type binary systems in our sample have model ages of ∼11.5 Myr, which is consistent with the latest age estimates for Upper Scorpius, while the M-type binary systems have significantly younger model ages of ∼7 Myr. Based on our fits, this age discrepancy in the models corresponds to a luminosity underprediction of 0.8–0.15 dex, or equivalently an effective temperature overprediction of 100–300 K for M-type stars at a given pre-main-sequence age. We also find that the M-type binary system RXJ 1550.0-2312 has an age (∼16 Myr) and distance (∼85 pc) consistent with membership in the Upper Centaurus Lupus subgroup.