793 research outputs found
Accretion, disks, and magnetic activity in the TW Hya association
We present new photometric and spectroscopic data for the M-type members of
the TW Hya association with the aim of a comprehensive study of accretion,
disks and magnetic activity at the critical age of ~10 Myr where circumstellar
matter disappears.Comment: 4 pages, to appear in Proceedings IAU Symposium No. 314, Young Stars
& Planets Near the Sun, 201
X-Shooter spectroscopy of FU Tau A
We have analyzed a broad-band optical and near-infrared spectrum of FU Tau A,
a presumed young brown dwarf in the Taurus star forming region that has
intrigued both theorists and observers by its over-luminosity in the HR diagram
with respect to standard pre-main sequence evolutionary models. The new data,
obtained with the X-Shooter spectrograph at the Very Large Telescope, include
an unprecedented wealth of information on stellar parameters and simultaneously
observed accretion and outflow indicators for FU Tau A. We present the first
measurements of gravity (log g = 3.5 +- 0.5), radial velocity (RV = 22.5 +- 2.9
km/s), rotational velocity (v sin(i) = 20 +- 5 km/s) and lithium equivalent
width (W_Li = 430 +- 20 mAA) for FUTau A. From the rotational velocity and the
published period we infer a disk inclination of i ~ 50^deg. The lithium content
is much lower than theoretically expected for such a young very low mass
object, adding another puzzling feature to this object's properties. We
determine the mass accretion rate of FU Tau A from comparison of the
luminosities of 24 emission lines to empirical calibrations from the literature
and find a mean of log (dM/dt)_acc [M_sun/yr] = -9.9 +- 0.2. The accretion rate
determined independently from modeling of the excess emission in the Balmer and
Paschen continua is consistent with this value. The corresponding accretion
luminosity is too small to make a significant contribution to the bolometric
luminosity. The existence of an outflow in FU Tau A is demonstrated through the
first detection of forbidden emission lines from which we obtain an estimate
for the mass loss rate, log (dM/dt)_out [M_sun/yr] < -10.4. The mass outflow
and inflow rates can be combined to yield (dM/dt)_out / (dM/dt)_acc ~ 0.3, a
value that is in agreement with jet launching models.Comment: 12 pages, accepted for publication in A&
An extensive VLT/X-Shooter library of photospheric templates of pre-main sequence stars
Studies of the formation and evolution of young stars and their disks rely on
the knowledge of the stellar parameters of the young stars. The derivation of
these parameters is commonly based on comparison with photospheric template
spectra. Furthermore, chromospheric emission in young active stars impacts the
measurement of mass accretion rates, a key quantity to study disk evolution.
Here we derive stellar properties of low-mass pre-main sequence stars without
disks, which represent ideal photospheric templates for studies of young stars.
We also use these spectra to constrain the impact of chromospheric emission on
the measurements of mass accretion rates. The spectra in reduced,
flux-calibrated, and corrected for telluric absorption form are made available
to the community. We derive the spectral type for our targets by analyzing the
photospheric molecular features present in their VLT/X-Shooter spectra by means
of spectral indices and comparison of the relative strength of photospheric
absorption features. We also measure effective temperature, gravity, projected
rotational velocity, and radial velocity from our spectra by fitting them with
synthetic spectra with the ROTFIT tool. The targets have negligible extinction
and spectral type from G5 to M8. We perform synthetic photometry on the spectra
to derive the typical colors of young stars in different filters. We measure
the luminosity of the emission lines present in the spectra and estimate the
noise due to chromospheric emission in the measurements of accretion luminosity
in accreting stars. We provide a calibration of the photospheric colors of
young PMS stars as a function of their spectral type in a set of standard
broad-band optical and near-infrared filters. For stars with masses of ~
1.5Msun and ages of ~1-5 Myr, the chromospheric noise converts to a limit of
measurable mass accretion rates of ~ 3x10^-10 Msun/yr.Comment: Accepted for publication on Astronomy & Astrophysics. The spectra of
the photospheric templates will be uploaded to Vizier, but are already
available on request. Abstract shortened for arxiv constraints. Language
edited versio
REM near-IR and optical photometric monitoring of Pre-Main Sequence Stars in Orion
We performed an intensive photometric monitoring of the PMS stars falling in
a field of about 10x10 arc-minutes in the vicinity of the Orion Nebula Cluster
(ONC). Photometric data were collected between November 2006 and January 2007
with the REM telescope in the VRIJHK' bands. The largest number of observations
is in the I band (about 2700 images) and in J and H bands (about 500 images in
each filter). From the observed rotational modulation, induced by the presence
of surface inhomogeneities, we derived the rotation periods for 16 stars and
improved previous determinations for the other 13. The analysis of the spectral
energy distributions and, for some stars, of high-resolution spectra provided
us with the main stellar parameters (luminosity, effective temperature, mass,
age, and vsini). We also report the serendipitous detection of two strong
flares in two of these objects. In most cases, the light-curve amplitudes
decrease progressively from the R to H band as expected for cool starspots,
while in a few cases, they can only be modelled by the presence of hot spots,
presumably ascribable to magnetospheric accretion. The application of our own
spot model to the simultaneous light curves in different bands allowed us to
deduce the spot parameters and particularly to disentangle the spot temperature
and size effects on the observed light curves.Comment: 29 pages, 24 figure
Connection between jets, winds and accretion in T Tauri stars: the X-shooter view
We have analysed the [OI]6300 A line in a sample of 131 young stars with
discs in the Lupus, Chamaeleon and signa Orionis star forming regions, observed
with the X-shooter spectrograph at VLT. The stars have mass accretion rates
spanning from 10^{-12} to 10^{-7} Mo/yr. The line profile was deconvolved into
a low velocity component (LVC,
40 km/s ), originating from slow winds and high velocity jets, respectively.
The LVC is by far the most frequent component, with a detection rate of 77%,
while only 30% of sources have a HVC. The [OI]6300 luminosity of both the LVC
and HVC, when detected, correlates with stellar and accretion parameters of the
central sources (i.e. Lstar , Mstar , Lacc , Macc), with similar slopes for the
two components. The line luminosity correlates better with the accretion
luminosity than with the stellar luminosity or stellar mass. We suggest that
accretion is the main drivers for the line excitation and that MHD disc-winds
are at the origin of both components. In the sub-sample of Lupus sources
observed with ALMA a relationship is found between the HVC peak velocity and
the outer disc inclination angle, as expected if the HVC traces jets ejected
perpendicularly to the disc plane. Mass loss rates measured from the HVC span
from ~ 10^{-13} to ~10^{-7} Mo/yr. The corresponding Mloss/Macc ratio ranges
from ~0.01 to ~0.5, with an average value of 0.07. However, considering the
upper limits on the HVC, we infer a ratio < 0.03 in more than 40% of sources.
We argue that most of these sources might lack the physical conditions needed
for an efficient magneto-centrifugal acceleration in the star-disc interaction
region. Systematic observations of populations of younger stars, that is, class
0/I, are needed to explore how the frequency and role of jets evolve during the
pre-main sequence phase.Comment: 15 pages, 14 figures, Accepted for publication in A&
Cold Disks: Spitzer Spectroscopy of Disks around Young Stars with Large Gaps
We have identified four circumstellar disks with a deficit of dust emission
from their inner 15-50 AU. All four stars have F-G spectral type, and were
uncovered as part of the Spitzer Space Telescope ``Cores to Disks'' Legacy
Program Infrared Spectrograph (IRS) first look survey of ~100 pre-main sequence
stars. Modeling of the spectral energy distributions indicates a reduction in
dust density by factors of 100-1000 from disk radii between ~0.4 and 15-50 AU,
but with massive gas-rich disks at larger radii. This large contrast between
the inner and outer disk has led us to use the term `cold disks' to distinguish
these unusual systems. However, hot dust [0.02-0.2 Mmoon] is still present
close to the central star (R ~0.8 AU). We introduce the 30/13 micron, flux
density ratio as a new diagnostic for identifying cold disks. The mechanisms
for dust clearing over such large gaps are discussed. Though rare, cold disks
are likely in transition from an optically thick to an optically thin state,
and so offer excellent laboratories for the study of planet formation.Comment: 13 pages, 3 figures, accepted to ApJ
- …