The TRENDS High-Contrast Imaging Survey. II. Direct Detection of the HD 8375 Tertiary

TL;DR

This paper reports the direct imaging discovery of a faint M1V tertiary companion to the HD 8375 binary system, combining high-contrast adaptive optics imaging with Doppler and RV data to characterize its orbit and properties.

Contribution

First direct imaging detection of a tertiary companion in the HD 8375 system using Keck AO observations, with combined data refining its orbit and mass estimate.

Findings

Detected the tertiary companion via high-contrast imaging

Confirmed common proper motion and orbital motion

Estimated the companion's spectral type and mass lower limit

Abstract

We present the direct imaging detection of a faint tertiary companion to the single-lined spectroscopic binary HD 8375 AB. Initially noticed as an 53 m/s/yr Doppler acceleration by Bowler et al. 2010, we have obtained high-contrast adaptive optics observations at Keck using NIRC2 that spatially resolve HD 8375 C from its host(s). Astrometric measurements demonstrate that the companion shares a common proper-motion. We detect orbital motion in a clockwise direction. Multiband relative photometry measurements are consistent with a spectral-type of M1V. Our combined Doppler and imaging observations place a lower-limit of m>0.297Msun on its dynamical mass. We also provide a refined orbit for the inner pair using recent RV measurements obtained with HIRES. HD 8375 is one of many triple-star systems that are apparently missing in the solar neighborhood.