Surface brightness distance determinations to the Large Magellanic Cloud Cepheid variables HV 899 and 2257*

Abstract

We present new VRI light curves for the long-period LMC Cepheids HV899 and 2257 and combine these data with the CORAVEL radial velocity curves of Imbert to derive the distances to these variables using the surface brightness method. Assuming metallicities of [Fe/H]=(−0.4±0.2) for both supergiants, we find metallicity-corrected distances of (65.2±4.3) kpc for HV899 and (65.7±4.3) kpc for HV2257, which correspond to true distance moduli of (19.07±0.15) and (19.09±0.15) mag, respectively. These distance moduli are about 0.4 mag larger than those predicted for the LMC by the galactic Cepheid calibration of the surface brightness method of Gieren, Barnes & Moffett [which predicts μ 0 (LMC)∼18.65 mag]