Robinson, Edward AST-9731416 Dr. Robinson will carry out an observational program to study black holes which occur in soft X-ray transient systems (SXT's), binary systems in which mass is being transferred from a relatively normal star to a compact star through an accretion disk. He will use the Hobby-Eberly Telescope for a long-term synoptic program of spectroscopy of these faint SXT's, as well as detailed studies of selected objects. The primary goals of the program are to determine more accurate mass ratios and black hole masses and to determine the properties and evolution of accretion disks surrounding the black holes.
