Title: Gamma-ray Emission from Colliding Stellar Winds in Long-Period Wolf-Rayet Binary Systems


Proposal ID: 0120088
Subject category: Others
Principal investigator: Stevens
Institute: University of Birmingham


Abstract

We wish to observe several long period Wolf-Rayet colliding wind binary systems, namely WR140 (HD193793), WR146 and WR147 at gamma-ray energies. These sorts of systems have been mooted as likely gamma-ray sources, though none has yet been unambiguosly detected (though WR140 is a likely EGRET source). Inverse Compton emission, associated with shock accelerated electrons will be the dominant emission mechanism. These INTEGRAL observations are highly likely to detect these sources, and in turn, provide substantial insight into the enrgetic non-thermal processes in such systems.