Spectral changes during six years of Scorpius X-1 monitoring with BeppoSAX Wide Field Cameras

Abstract

We analyse a sample of fifty-five observations of Scorpius X-1 available in the BeppoSAX Wide Field Camera public archive and spanning over the six years of BeppoSAX mission life. Spectral changes are initially analysed by inspection of colour-colour and colour-intensity diagrams, we also discuss the shift of the Z tracks in these diagrams. Then we select two long observations for spectral fitting analysis, a secular shift is evident between the tracks in these observations. We finally extract spectra along the tracks and discuss the best fit model, the parameter variations along the track and between tracks, and their link to the accretion rate.