The Wolf-Rayet binary WR141 (WN5o+O5V-III) revisited

We combine all previously published radial velocity measurements of the spectroscopic binary WR 141 with new CCD data from 1988-1989 and 1992, complemented by polarimetric broadband measurements from 1989. This enables us to refine the orbital elements [P = 21.6895 days, e = 0.018, K-WR = 118 km s(-1), K-o (163-193) km s(-1)], estimate the masses of the components [M-WR (36-54) M., M-o = (26-33) M. for orbital inclination i = 68 degrees], and restore the spectrum of the O star via a specifically designed decomposition algorithm. Along with pronounced erratic variations, the spectral lines of the WR component demonstrate systematic phase-locked variability induced by the radiation field of the hot, luminous O companion.