Measurement of the masses of the neutron star, Her X-1, and its binary companion, HZ Her, as derived from the study of 1.24-second optical pulsations from the Hz Her - Her X-1 binary system and the x ray-to-optical reprocessing reflection and transmission mechanisms

Intermittent optical pulsations at the 0.1--0.3 percent level have been detected from this binary system in over 500 hours of optical observations. These pulsations are present only for well defined values of the 1.7-day (binary) and 35-day phases. Positions of the pulsation-emitting regions, projected onto the orbital plane, have been measured and three distinct regions have been resolved. A simple model is put forth which accounts for the observed binary behavior, which gives a direct determination of the mass ratio, M/sub HZ Her//M/sub Her X-1/ = 1.69 +- 0.05, and which establishes that the spin of the pulsar is prograde. Additionally it is shown that HZ Her fills its critical Roche lobe. Using the above, the known x ray eclipse duration, and the mass function, the orbital inclination is calculated to be i = 850 +- 50 and the masses to be M/sub Her X-1/ = 1.28 +- 0.08 M/sub solar/ and M/sub HZ Her/ = 2.16 +- 0.07 M/sub solar/. Constraints on the physical parameters of the accretion stream and disk are derived from the data. The nature of the 35-day modulation of the data is discussed in relation to various models