Eclipsing binaries are fascinating objects. A lone star is seldom useful to an astronomer. However, when there are a couple of these stars orbiting each other, we can infer many things from the eclipses and gravitational dynamics of these stars. 

Binary stars are very common in the universe. About 50 percent of all stars are in binary systems. Eclipsing binaries are a special class of binary stars that show eclipses. This is because they block the light periodically as they cross in front of each other. 

We see periodic dips in brightness when we observe these stars. The resulting plot of intensity versus time is called a light curve as shown below.

My research work with the Araucaria Project team at the Nicolaus Copernicus Astronomical Center, Poland, was associated with measuring precise distances to nearby galaxies using detached eclipsing binaries.  (Araucaria Project)

Cover image: Simulation generated with Nightfall by Klaus Wichmann (GFDL 1.3). © Nightfall authors.