The astrometric/morphological variability and the birth place of LS 5039

TL;DR

This paper presents high-resolution VLBA observations of LS 5039, revealing its morphological and astrometric variability over an orbital cycle, and discusses its potential association with a nearby supernova remnant.

Contribution

The study provides detailed radio morphological and astrometric data of LS 5039 across an orbital cycle, enhancing understanding of its nature and environment.

Findings

Detected morphological variability at milliarcsecond scales.

Observed astrometric shifts correlated with orbital phase.

Discussed possible link between LS 5039 and SNR G016.8-01.1.

Abstract

LS 5039 is one of the few X-ray binaries detected at VHE, and potentially contains a young non-accreting pulsar. The outflow of accelerated particles emitting synchrotron emission can be directly mapped with high resolution radio observations. The morphology of the radio emission strongly depends on the properties of the compact object and on the orbital parameters of the binary system. We present VLBA observations of LS 5039 covering an orbital cycle, which show morphological and astrometric variability at mas scales. On the other hand, we discuss the possible association of LS 5039 with the supernova remnant SNR G016.8-01.1.