We present a statistical study of the largest bibliographic compilation of stellar and orbital parameters of W UMa stars derived by light-curve synthesis with Roche models. The compilation includes nearly 700 individually investigated objects from over 450 distinct publications. Almost 70% of this sample is comprised of stars observed in the past decade that have not been considered in previous statistical studies. We estimate the ages of the cataloged stars, model the distributions of their periods, mass ratios, temperatures, and other quantities, and compare them with the data from the Catalina Real-Time Transient Survey, LAMOST, and Gaia archives. As only a small fraction of the sample has radial-velocity curves, we examine the reliability of the photometric mass ratios in totally and partially eclipsing systems and find that totally eclipsing W UMa stars with photometric mass ratios have the same parameter distributions as those with spectroscopic mass ratios. Most of the stars with reliable parameters have mass ratios below 0.5 and orbital periods shorter than 0.5 days. Stars with longer periods and temperatures above 7000 K stand out as outliers and should not be labeled W UMa binaries. The collected data are available as an online database at https://wumacat.aob.rs.

We analyse the CoRoT and V-passband ground-based light curves of the interacting close binary AU Mon, assuming that there is a geometrically and optically thick accretion disc around the hotter and more massive star, as inferred from the photometric and spectroscopic characteristics of the binary. Our model fits the observations very well and provides estimates for the orbital elements and physical parameters of the components and of the accretion disc.

Aims. We analyze new multicolor light curves and recently published radial velocity curves for close binaries QX And, RW Com, MR Del, and BD +07 • 3142 to determine the physical parameters of the components. Methods. The light curves are analyzed using a binary star model based on Roche geometry to fit the photometric observations. Spectroscopic parameters, such as the mass ratios and spectral types, were taken from recent spectroscopic studies of the systems in question. Results. Our findings provide consistent and reliable sets of stellar parameters for the four studied binary systems. Of particular interest is the BD +07 • 3142 system, since this is the first analysis of its light curves. We find that it is an overcontact binary of W UMa type and W subtype, and that each component has a large cool spot in the polar region. QX And is an A subtype, and RW Com a W subtype W UMa binary, and in both systems we find a bright spot in the neck region between the components. MR Del is a detached binary with a complex light curve that we could model with two cool spots on the hotter component.

We observed the post-common-envelope eclipsing binary with a white dwarf component, QS Vir, using the 1.88 m telescope of Kotammia Observatory in Egypt. The new observations were analyzed together with all multicolor light curves available online (sampling a period of 25 years), using a full-feature binary system modeling software based on Roche geometry. This is the first time complete photometric modeling was done with most of these data. QS Vir is a detached system, with the red dwarf component underfilling its Roche lobe by a small margin. All light curves feature out-of-eclipse variability that is associated with ellipsoidal variation, mutual irradiation and irregularities in surface brightness of the tidally distorted and magnetically active red dwarf. We tested models with one, two and three dark spots and found that one spot is sufficient to account for the light curve asymmetry in all datasets, although this does not rule out the presence of multiple spots. We also found that a single spotted model cannot fit light curves observed simultaneously in different filters. Instead, each filter requires a different spot configuration. To thoroughly explore the parameter space of spot locations, we devised a grid-search procedure and used it to find consistent solutions. Based on this, we conclude that the dark spot responsible for light curve distortions has been stable for the past 15 years, after a major migration that happened between 1993 and 2002, possibly due to a flip-flop event.

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