RADIAL-VELOCITY MEASURES AND THE EXISTENCE OF ASTROPHYSICAL BINARIES IN LATE-TYPE DWARF STARS

Radial velocities with errors of 1-2 km s⁻¹ have been obtained for 48 dK-M stars. A comparison of these velocities with published values in Gliese's (1969) catalog shows only two stars to be possible spectroscopic binaries with small velocity amplitudes. No short-period (P < 10 days) systems are found. This null result confirms and extends the work of Young, Sadjadi, and Harlan (1986) who conjecture that short-period or "astrophysical" binaries cannot exist among chromospherically inactive dM stars.