143 research outputs found
On the Mass Accretion Rates of Herbig Ae/Be Stars. Magnetospheric Accretion or Boundary Layer?
Understanding how young stars gain their masses through disk-to-star
accretion is of paramount importance in astrophysics. It affects our knowledge
about the early stellar evolution, the disk lifetime and dissipation processes,
the way the planets form on the smallest scales, or the connection to
macroscopic parameters characterizing star-forming regions on the largest ones,
among others. In turn, mass accretion rate estimates depend on the accretion
paradigm assumed. For low-mass T Tauri stars with strong magnetic fields there
is consensus that magnetospheric accretion (MA) is the driving mechanism, but
the transfer of mass in massive young stellar objects with weak or negligible
magnetic fields probably occurs directly from the disk to the star through a
hot boundary layer (BL). The intermediate-mass Herbig Ae/Be (HAeBe) stars
bridge the gap between both previous regimes and are still optically visible
during the pre-main sequence phase, thus constituting a unique opportunity to
test a possible change of accretion mode from MA to BL. This review deals with
our estimates of accretion rates in HAeBes, critically discussing the different
accretion paradigms. It shows that although mounting evidence supports that MA
may extend to late-type HAes but not to early-type HBes, there is not yet a
consensus on the validity of this scenario versus the BL one. Based on MA and
BL shock modeling, it is argued that the ultraviolet regime could significantly
contribute in the future to discriminating between these competing accretion
scenarios.Comment: 26 pages, 5 figures, 1 table. Invited Review accepted for publication
in "Galaxies" special issue: "Star Formation in the UV", ed. Jorick Vin
Accretion and circumstellar properties of Herbig Ae/Be stars
Tesis doctoral inédita. Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Facultad de Ciencias, Departamento de Física Teórica. Fecha de lectura: 13-01-201
Accretion variability of Herbig Ae/Be stars observed by X-Shooter. HD 31648 and HD 163296
This work presents X-Shooter/VLT spectra of the prototypical, isolated Herbig
Ae stars HD 31648 (MWC 480) and HD 163296 over five epochs separated by
timescales ranging from days to months. Each spectrum spans over a wide
wavelength range covering from 310 to 2475 nm. We have monitored the continuum
excess in the Balmer region of the spectra and the luminosity of twelve
ultraviolet, optical and near infrared spectral lines that are commonly used as
accretion tracers for T Tauri stars. The observed strengths of the Balmer
excesses have been reproduced from a magnetospheric accretion shock model,
providing a mean mass accretion rate of 1.11 x 10^-7 and 4.50 x 10^-7 Msun
yr^-1 for HD 31648 and HD 163296, respectively. Accretion rate variations are
observed, being more pronounced for HD 31648 (up to 0.5 dex). However, from the
comparison with previous results it is found that the accretion rate of HD
163296 has increased by more than 1 dex, on a timescale of ~ 15 years. Averaged
accretion luminosities derived from the Balmer excess are consistent with the
ones inferred from the empirical calibrations with the emission line
luminosities, indicating that those can be extrapolated to HAe stars. In spite
of that, the accretion rate variations do not generally coincide with those
estimated from the line luminosities, suggesting that the empirical
calibrations are not useful to accurately quantify accretion rate variability.Comment: 14 pages, 7 Figures, Accepted in Ap
Medium-resolution near-infrared spectroscopy of massive young stellar objects
We present medium-resolution (R ∼ 7000) near-infrared echelle spectroscopic data for 36 massive young stellar objects (MYSOs) drawn from the Red MSX Source survey. This is the largest sample observed at this resolution at these wavelengths of MYSOs to date. The spectra are characterized mostly by emission from hydrogen recombination lines and accretion diagnostic lines. One MYSO shows photospheric H i absorption, a comparison with spectral standards indicates that the star is an A-type star with a low surface gravity, implying that the MYSOs are probably swollen, as also suggested by evolutionary calculations. An investigation of the Brγ line profiles shows that most are in pure emission, while 13 ± 5 per cent display P Cygni profiles, indicative of outflow, while less than 8 ± 4 per cent have inverse P Cygni profiles, indicative of infall. These values are comparable with investigations into the optically bright Herbig Be stars, but not with those of Herbig Ae and T Tauri stars, consistent with the notion that the more massive stars undergo accretion in a different fashion than lower mass objects that are undergoing magnetospheric accretion. Accretion luminosities and rates as derived from the Br γ line luminosities agree with results for lower mass sources, providing tentative evidence for massive star formation theories based on scaling of low-mass scenarios. We present Br γ/Br12 line profile ratios exploiting the fact that optical depth effects can be traced as a function of Doppler shift across the lines. These show that the winds of MYSOs in this sample are nearly equally split between constant, accelerating and decelerating velocity structures. There are no trends between the types of features we see and bolometric luminosities or near-infrared colours
The compact Hα emitting regions of the Herbig Ae/Be stars HD 179218 and HD 141569 from CHARA spectro-interferometry
This work presents CHARA/VEGA Hα spectro-interferometry (R ∼ 6000, and λ/2B ∼ 1 mas) of HD 179218 and HD 141569, doubling the sample of Herbig Ae/Be (HAeBe) stars for which this type of observations is available so far. The observed Hα emission is spatially unresolved, indicating that the size of the Hα emitting region is smaller than ∼0.21 and 0.12 au for HD 179218 and HD 141529 (∼15 and 16 R*, respectively). This is smaller than for the two other HAeBes previously observed with the same instrumentation. Two different scenarios have been explored in order to explain the compact line emitting regions. A hot, several thousand K, blackbody disc is consistent with the observations of HD 179218 and HD 141569. Magnetospheric accretion (MA) is able to reproduce the bulk of the Hα emission shown by HD 179218, confirming previous estimates from MA shock modelling with a mass accretion rate of 10−8 M⊙ yr−1, and an inclination to the line of sight between 30∘ and 50∘. The Hα profile of HD 141569 cannot be fitted from MA due to the high rotational velocity of this object. Putting the CHARA sample together, a variety of scenarios is required to explain the Hα emission in HAeBe stars – compact or extended, discs, accretion, and winds – in agreement with previous Brγ spectro-interferometric observations
Los mitos fundacionales de Israel y su pervivencia como legitimadores en la colonización de Palestina: Uso y desmitificación
Tesis doctoral inédita leída en la Univeridad Autónoma de Madrid, Departamento de Estudios Árabes e Islámico
The accretion rates and mechanisms of Herbig Ae/Be stars
This work presents a spectroscopic study of 163 Herbig Ae/Be stars. Amongst these, we present new data for 30 objects. Stellar parameters such as temperature, reddening, mass, luminosity, and age are homogeneously determined. Mass accretion rates are determined from Hα emission line measurements. Our data is complemented with the X-Shooter sample from previous studies and we update results using Gaia DR2 parallaxes giving a total of 78 objects with homogeneously determined stellar parameters and mass accretion rates. In addition, mass accretion rates of an additional 85 HAeBes are determined. We confirm previous findings that the mass accretion rate increases as a function of stellar mass, and the existence of a different slope for lower and higher mass stars, respectively. The mass where the slope changes is determined tobe 3.98+1.37−0.94M⊙. We discuss this break in the context of different modes of disc accretion for low- and high-mass stars. Because of their similarities with T Tauri stars, we identify the accretion mechanism for the late-type Herbig stars with the Magnetospheric Accretion. The possibilities for the earlier-type stars are still open, we suggest the Boundary Layer accretion model may be a viable alternative. Finally, we investigated themass accretion–age relationship. Even using the superior Gaia based data, it proved hard to select a large enough sub-sample to remove the mass dependence in this relationship. Yet, it would appear that the mass accretion does decline with age as expected from basic theoretical considerations
Catalogue of new Herbig Ae/Be and classical Be stars - A machine learning approach to Gaia DR2
Context. The intermediate-mass pre-main sequence Herbig Ae/Be stars are key to understanding the differences in formation mechanisms between low- and high-mass stars. The study of the general properties of these objects is hampered by the lack of a well-defined, homogeneous sample, and because few and mostly serendipitously discovered sources are known.
Aims. Our goal is to identify new Herbig Ae/Be candidates to create a homogeneous and well defined catalogue of these objects.
Methods. We have applied machine learning techniques to 4 150 983 sources with data from Gaia DR2, 2MASS, WISE, and IPHAS or VPHAS+. Several observables were chosen to identify new Herbig Ae/Be candidates based on our current knowledge of this class, which is characterised by infrared excesses, photometric variabilities, and Hα emission lines. Classical techniques are not efficient for identifying new Herbig Ae/Be stars mainly because of their similarity with classical Be stars, with which they share many characteristics. By focusing on disentangling these two types of objects, our algorithm has also identified new classical Be stars.
Results. We have obtained a large catalogue of 8470 new pre-main sequence candidates and another catalogue of 693 new classical Be candidates with a completeness of 78.8 ± 1.4% and 85.5 ± 1.2%, respectively. Of the catalogue of pre-main sequence candidates, at least 1361 sources are potentially new Herbig Ae/Be candidates according to their position in the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. In this study we present the methodology used, evaluate the quality of the catalogues, and perform an analysis of their flaws and biases. For this assessment, we make use of observables that have not been accounted for by the algorithm and hence are selection-independent, such as coordinates and parallax based distances. The catalogue of new Herbig Ae/Be stars that we present here increases the number of known objects of the class by an order of magnitude
Probing stellar accretion with mid-infrared hydrogen lines
In this paper we investigate the origin of the mid-infrared (IR) hydrogen
recombination lines for a sample of 114 disks in different evolutionary stages
(full, transitional and debris disks) collected from the {\it Spitzer} archive.
We focus on the two brighter {H~{\sc i}} lines observed in the {\it Spitzer}
spectra, the {H~{\sc i}}(7-6) at 12.37m and the {H~{\sc i}}(9-7) at
11.32m. We detect the {H~{\sc i}}(7-6) line in 46 objects, and the {H~{\sc
i}}(9-7) in 11. We compare these lines with the other most common gas line
detected in {\it Spitzer} spectra, the {[Ne~{\sc iii}]} at 12.81m. We
argue that it is unlikely that the {H~{\sc i}} emission originates from the
photoevaporating upper surface layers of the disk, as has been found for the
{[Ne~{\sc iii}]} lines toward low-accreting stars. Using the {H~{\sc
i}}(9-7)/{H~{\sc i}}(7-6) line ratios we find these gas lines are likely
probing gas with hydrogen column densities of 10-10~cm.
The subsample of objects surrounded by full and transitional disks show a
positive correlation between the accretion luminosity and the {H~{\sc i}} line
luminosity. These two results suggest that the observed mid-IR {H~{\sc i}}
lines trace gas accreting onto the star in the same way as other hydrogen
recombination lines at shorter wavelengths. A pure chromospheric origin of
these lines can be excluded for the vast majority of full and transitional
disks.We report for the first time the detection of the {H~{\sc i}}(7-6) line
in eight young (< 20~Myr) debris disks. A pure chromospheric origin cannot be
ruled out in these objects. If the {H~{\sc i}}(7-6) line traces accretion in
these older systems, as in the case of full and transitional disks, the
strength of the emission implies accretion rates lower than
10M/yr. We discuss some advantages of extending accretion
indicators to longer wavelengths
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