The Interferometric Binary ε Cnc in Praesepe: Precise Masses and Age

We observe the brightest member of the Praesepe cluster, epsilon Cnc, to precisely measure the characteristics of the stars in this binary system, en route to a new measurement of the cluster's age. We present spectroscopic radial velocity measurements and interferometric observations of the sky-projected orbit to derive the masses, which we find to be M (1)/M (circle dot) = 2.420 +/- 0.008 and M (2)/M (circle dot) = 2.226 +/- 0.004. We place limits on the color-magnitude positions of the stars by using spectroscopic and interferometric luminosity ratios while trying to reproduce the spectral energy distribution of epsilon Cnc. We reexamine the cluster membership of stars at the bright end of the color-magnitude diagram using Gaia data and literature radial velocity information. The binary star data are consistent with an age of 637 +/- 19 Myr, as determined from MIST model isochrones. The masses and luminosities of the stars appear to select models with the most commonly used amount of convective core overshooting.

Automated summary

This article observes the brightest member epsilon Cnc of the Praesepe cluster, precisely measures the characteristics of stars in this binary system, and presents spectroscopic radial velocity measurements and interferometric observations to determine the masses. The binary star data are consistent with an age of 637 +/- 19 Myr, as determined from MIST model isochrones.