2,157 research outputs found
The effects of numerical resolution on hydrodynamical surface convection simulations and spectral line formation
The computationally demanding nature of radiative-hydrodynamical simulations
of stellar surface convection warrants an investigation of the sensitivity of
the convective structure and spectral synthesis to the numerical resolution and
dimension of the simulations, which is presented here. With too coarse a
resolution the predicted spectral lines tend to be too narrow, reflecting
insufficient Doppler broadening from the convective motions, while at the
currently highest affordable resolution the line shapes have converged
essentially perfectly to the observed profiles. Similar conclusions are drawn
from the line asymmetries and shifts. In terms of abundances, weak FeI and FeII
lines show a very small dependence (~0.02 dex) while for intermediate strong
lines with significant non-thermal broadening the sensitivity increases (~0.10
dex). Problems arise when using 2D convection simulations to describe an
inherent 3D phenomenon, which translates to inaccurate atmospheric velocity
fields and temperature and pressure structures. In 2D the theoretical line
profiles tend to be too shallow and broad compared with the 3D calculations and
observations, in particular for intermediate strong lines. In terms of
abundances, the 2D results are systematically about 0.1 dex lower than for the
3D case for FeI lines. Furthermore, the predicted line asymmetries and shifts
are much inferior in 2D. Given these shortcomings and computing time
considerations it is better to use 3D simulations of even modest resolution
than high-resolution 2D simulations.Comment: Accepted for A&
Freshly ionized matter around the final Helium shell flash object V4334 Sgr (Sakurai's object)
We report on the discovery of recently ionized hydrogen-deficient gas in the
immediate circumstellar environment of the final helium shell flash star V4334
Sgr (Sakurai's object). On spectra obtained with FORS2 multi-object
spectroscopy we have found spatially extended (about 2") emission from [N II],
[O I], [O II] and very faint Halpha and [S II]. In the [N II] (ll6548,83) lines
we have identified two components located at velocities -350 +/-50 and +200
+/-50 km/s, relative to V4334 Sgr itself. The full width of the [N II] l6583
feature at zero intensity corresponds to a velocity spread of about 1500 km/s.
Based on the available data it is not possible to conclusively determine the
mechanism of ionization. Both photo-ionization, from a rapidly evolving central
star, and shock excitation, as the result of the collision of the fast ouflows
with slower circumstellar matter, could account for the observed lines. The
central star is still hidden behind strong dust absorption, since only a faint
highly reddened continuum is apparent in the spectra. Theory states that it
will become hotter and will retrace its post-asymptotic giant branch evolution
towards the planetary nebula domain. Our detection of the ionized ejecta from
the very late helium shell flash marks the beginning of a new phase in this
star's amazingly rapid evolution.Comment: 11 pages, 2 figures. Accepted by ApJ
Accounting for Convective Blue-Shifts in the Determination of Absolute Stellar Radial Velocities
For late-type non-active stars, gravitational redshifts and convective
blueshifts are the main source of biases in the determination of radial
velocities. If ignored, these effects can introduce systematic errors of the
order of ~ 0.5 km/s. We demonstrate that three-dimensional hydrodynamical
simulations of solar surface convection can be used to predict the convective
blue-shifts of weak spectral lines in solar-like stars to ~ 0.070 km/s. Using
accurate trigonometric parallaxes and stellar evolution models, the
gravitational redshifts can be constrained with a similar uncertainty, leading
to absolute radial velocities accurate to better than ~ 0.1 km/s.Comment: To appear in the proceedings of the Joint Discussion 10, IAU General
Assembly, Rio de Janeiro, August 10-11, 200
Progress report on solar age calibration
We report on an ongoing investigation into a seismic calibration of solar
models designed for estimating the main-sequence age and a measure of the
chemical abundances of the Sun. Only modes of low degree are employed, so that
with appropriate modification the procedure could be applied to other stars. We
have found that, as has been anticipated, a separation of the contributions to
the seismic frequencies arising from the relatively smooth, glitch-free,
background structure of the star and from glitches produced by helium
ionization and the abrupt gradient change at the base of the convection zone
renders the procedure more robust than earlier calibrations that fitted only
raw frequencies to glitch-free asymptotics. As in the past, we use asymptotic
analysis to design seismic signatures that are, to the best of our ability,
contaminated as little as possible by those uncertain properties of the star
that are not directly associated with age and chemical composition. The
calibration itself, however, employs only numerically computed
eigenfrequencies. It is based on a linear perturbation from a reference model.
Two reference models have been used, one somewhat younger, the other somewhat
older than the Sun. The two calibrations, which use BiSON data, are
more-or-less consistent, and yield a main-sequence age Gy, coupled with a formal initial heavy-element abundance .
The error analysis has not yet been completed, so the estimated precision must
be taken with a pinch of salt.Comment: 8 pages, 3 figures, in L. Deng, K.L. Chan, C. Chiosi, eds, The Art of
Modelling Stars in the 21st Century, Proc. IAU Symp. No. 252, invited
contributed pape
Numerical simulations of surface convection in a late M-dwarf
Based on detailed 2D and 3D numerical radiation-hydrodynamics (RHD)
simulations of time-dependent compressible convection, we have studied the
dynamics and thermal structure of the convective surface layers of a
prototypical late-type M-dwarf (Teff~2800K log(g)=5.0, solar chemical
composition). The RHD models predict stellar granulation qualitatively similar
to the familiar solar pattern. Quantitatively, the granular cells show a
convective turn-over time scale of ~100s, and a horizontal scale of 80km; the
relative intensity contrast of the granular pattern amounts to 1.1%, and
root-mean-square vertical velocities reach 240m/s at maximum. Deviations from
radiative equilibrium in the higher, formally convectively stable atmospheric
layers are found to be insignificant allowing a reliable modeling of the
atmosphere with 1D standard model atmospheres. A mixing-length parameter of
alpha=2.1 provides the best representation of the average thermal structure of
the RHD model atmosphere while alternative values are found when fitting the
asymptotic entropy encountered in deeper layers of the stellar envelope
alpha=1.5, or when matching the vertical velocity field alpha=3.5. The close
correspondence between RHD and standard model atmospheres implies that
presently existing discrepancies between observed and predicted stellar colors
in the M-dwarf regime cannot be traced back to an inadequate treatment of
convection in the 1D standard models. The RHD models predict a modest extension
of the convectively mixed region beyond the formal Schwarzschild stability
boundary which provides hints for the distribution of dust grains in cooler
(brown dwarf) atmospheres.Comment: 19 pages, 16 figures, accepted for publication in A&
Hydrodynamical model atmospheres and 3D spectral synthesis
We discuss three issues in the context of three-dimensional (3D)
hydrodynamical model atmospheres for late-type stars, related to spectral line
shifts, radiative transfer in metal-poor 3D models, and the solar oxygen
abundance. We include a brief overview about the model construction, taking the
radiation-hydrodynamics code CO5BOLD (COnservative COde for the COmputation of
COmpressible COnvection in a BOx of L Dimensions with L=2,3) and the related
spectral synthesis package Linfor3D as examples.Comment: 6 pages, 2 figures, to appear in the Proceedings of the
ESO/Lisbon/Aveiro Workshop "Precision Spectroscopy in Astrophysics", eds. L.
Pasquini, M. Romaniello, N.C. Santos, and A. Correi
Statistical equilibrium of silicon in the solar atmosphere
The statistical equilibrium of neutral and ionised silicon in the solar
photosphere is investigated. Line formation is discussed and the solar silicon
abundance determined. High-resolution solar spectra were used to determine
solar values by comparison with Si line synthesis
based on LTE and NLTE level populations. The results will be used in a
forthcoming paper for differential abundance analyses of metal-poor stars. A
detailed analysis of silicon line spectra leads to setting up realistic model
atoms, which are exposed to interactions in plane-parallel solar atmospheric
models. The resulting departure coefficients are entered into a line-by-line
analysis of the visible and near-infrared solar silicon spectrum. The
statistical equilibrium of \ion{Si}{i} turns out to depend marginally on
bound-free interaction processes, both radiative and collisional. Bound-bound
interaction processes do not play a significant role either, except for
hydrogen collisions, which have to be chosen adequately for fitting the cores
of the near-infrared lines. Except for some near-infrared lines, the NLTE
influence on the abundances is weak. Taking the deviations from LTE in silicon
into account, it is possible to calculate the ionisation equilibrium from
neutral and ionised lines. The solar abundance based on the experimental
-values of Garz corrected for the Becker et al.'s measurement is . Combined with an extended line sample with selected NIST -values, the
solar abundance is , with a nearly perfect ionisation
equilibrium of \Delta\log\epsilon_\odot(\ion{Si}{ii}/\ion{Si}{i}) = -0.01.Comment: 13pages 10 figures. A&A acceptte
Parent Stars of Extrasolar Planets. XI. Trends with Condensation Temperature Revisited
We report the results of abundance analyses of new samples of stars with
planets and stars without detected planets. We employ these data to compare
abundance-condensation temperature trends in both samples. We find that stars
with planets have more negative trends. In addition, the more metal-rich stars
with planets display the most negative trends. These results confirm and extend
the findings of Ramirez et al. (2009) and Melendez et al. (2009), who
restricted their studies to solar analogs. We also show that the differences
between the solar photospheric and CI meteoritic abundances correlate with
condensation temperature.Comment: 7 pages, 11 figures; to be published in MNRA
- …