117 research outputs found
Fringe tracking performance monitoring: FINITO at VLTI
Since April 2011, realtime fringe tracking data are recorded simultaneously
with data from the VLTI/AMBER interferometric beam combiner. Not only this
offers possibilities to post-process AMBER reduced data to obtain more accurate
interferometric quantities, it also allows to estimate the performance of the
fringe tracking a function of the conditions of seeing, coherence time, flux,
etc. First we propose to define fringe tracking performance metrics in the
AMBER context, in particular as a function of AMBER's integration time. The
main idea is to determine the optimal exposure time for AMBER: short exposures
are dominated by readout noise and fringes in long exposures are completely
smeared out. Then we present this performance metrics correlated with Paranal
local ASM (Ambient Site Monitor) measurements, such as seeing, coherence time
or wind speed for example. Finally, we also present some preliminary results of
attempts to model and predict fringe tracking performances, using Artificial
Neural Networks.Comment: SPIE conference, Optical and Infrared Interferometry II
Four years' interferometric observations of Galactic binary Cepheids
We give an update on our long-term program of Galactic Cepheids started in
2012, whose goal is to measure the visual orbits of Cepheid companions. Using
the VLTI/PIONIER and CHARA/MIRC instruments, we have now detected several com-
panions, and we already have a good orbital coverage for several of them. By
combining interferometry and radial velocities, we can now derive all the
orbital elements of the systems, and we will be soon able to estimate the
Cepheid masses.Comment: 2 pages, 1 figure, proceedings of the 22nd Los Alamos Stellar
Pulsation Conference "Wide-field variability surveys: a 21st-century
perspective" held in San Pedro de Atacama, Chile, Nov. 28-Dec. 2, 201
Cepheid distances from the SpectroPhoto-Interferometry of Pulsating Stars (SPIPS) - Application to the prototypes delta Cep and eta Aql
The parallax of pulsation, and its implementations such as the
Baade-Wesselink method and the infrared surface bright- ness technique, is an
elegant method to determine distances of pulsating stars in a quasi-geometrical
way. However, these classical implementations in general only use a subset of
the available observational data. Freedman & Madore (2010) suggested a more
physical approach in the implementation of the parallax of pulsation in order
to treat all available data. We present a global and model-based
parallax-of-pulsation method that enables including any type of observational
data in a consistent model fit, the SpectroPhoto-Interferometric modeling of
Pulsating Stars (SPIPS). We implemented a simple model consisting of a
pulsating sphere with a varying effective temperature and a combina- tion of
atmospheric model grids to globally fit radial velocities, spectroscopic data,
and interferometric angular diameters. We also parametrized (and adjusted) the
reddening and the contribution of the circumstellar envelopes in the
near-infrared photometric and interferometric measurements. We show the
successful application of the method to two stars: delta Cep and eta Aql. The
agreement of all data fitted by a single model confirms the validity of the
method. Derived parameters are compatible with publish values, but with a
higher level of confidence. The SPIPS algorithm combines all the available
observables (radial velocimetry, interferometry, and photometry) to estimate
the physical parameters of the star (ratio distance/ p-factor, Teff, presence
of infrared excess, color excess, etc). The statistical precision is improved
(compared to other methods) thanks to the large number of data taken into
account, the accuracy is improved by using consistent physical modeling and the
reliability of the derived parameters is strengthened thanks to the redundancy
in the data.Comment: 10 pages, 4 figures, A&A in pres
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A New Calibration Of Galactic Cepheid Period-Luminosity Relations From B To K Bands, And A Comparison To LMC Relations
Context. The universality of the Cepheid period-luminosity (PL) relations has been under discussion since metallicity effects were assumed to play a role in the value of the intercept and, more recently, of the slope of these relations. Aims. The goal of the present study is to calibrate the Galactic PL relations in various photometric bands (from B to K) and to compare the results to the well-established PL relations in the LMC. Methods. We use a set of 59 calibrating stars, the distances of which are measured using five different distance indicators: Hubble Space Telescope and revised Hipparcos parallaxes, infrared surface brightness and interferometric Baade-Wesselink parallaxes, and classical Zero-Age-Main-Sequence-fitting parallaxes for Cepheids belonging to open clusters or OB stars associations. A detailed discussion of absorption corrections and projection factor to be used is given. Results. We find no significant difference in the slopes of the PL relations between LMC and our Galaxy. Conclusions. We conclude that the Cepheid PL relations have universal slopes in all photometric bands, not depending on the galaxy under study (at least for LMC and Milky Way). The possible zero-point variation with metal content is not discussed in the present work, but an upper limit of 18.50 for the LMC distance modulus can be deduced from our data.McDonald Observator
Extended envelopes around Galactic Cepheids III. Y Oph and alpha Per from near-infrared interferometry with CHARA/FLUOR
Unbiased angular diameter measurements are required for accurate distances to
Cepheids using the interferometric Baade Wesselink method (IBWM). The precision
of this technique is currently limited by interferometric measurements at the
1.5% level. At this level, the center-to-limb darkening (CLD) and the presence
of circumstellar envelopes (CSE) seem to be the two main sources of bias. The
observations we performed aim at improving our knowledge of the interferometric
visibility profile of Cepheids. In particular, we assess the systematic
presence of CSE around Cepheids in order determine accurate distances with the
IBWM free from CSE biased angular diameters. We observed a Cepheid (Y Oph) for
which the pulsation is well resolved and a non-pulsating yellow supergiant
(alpha Per) using long-baseline near-infrared interferometry. We interpreted
these data using a simple CSE model we previously developed. We found that our
observations of alpha Per do not provide evidence for a CSE. The measured CLD
is explained by an hydrostatic photospheric model. Our observations of Y Oph,
when compared to smaller baseline measurements, suggest that it is surrounded
by a CSE with similar characteristics to CSE found previously around other
Cepheids. We have determined the distance to Y Oph to be d=491+/-18 pc.
Additional evidence points toward the conclusion that most Cepheids are
surrounded by faint CSE, detected by near infrared interferometry: after
observing four Cepheids, all show evidence for a CSE. Our CSE non-detection
around a non-pulsating supergiant in the instability strip, alpha Per, provides
confidence in the detection technique and suggests a pulsation driven mass-loss
mechanism for the Cepheids.Comment: accepted for publication in Ap
Multiplicity of Galactic Cepheids from long-baseline interferometry~III. Sub-percent limits on the relative brightness of a close companion of ~Cephei
We report new CHARA/MIRC interferometric observations of the Cepheid
archetype Cep, which aimed at detecting the newly discovered
spectroscopic companion. We reached a maximum dynamic range = 6.4,
5.8, and 5.2 mag, respectively within the relative distance to the Cepheid mas, mas and mas. Our observations did not
show strong evidence of a companion. We have a marginal detection at
with a flux ratio of 0.21\%, but nothing convincing as we found other possible
probable locations. We ruled out the presence of companion with a spectral type
earlier than F0V, A1V and B9V, respectively for the previously cited ranges
. From our estimated sensitivity limits and the Cepheid light curve, we
derived lower-limit magnitudes in the band for this possible companion to
be and 7.77 mag, respectively for mas,
mas and mas. We also found that to be consistent
with the predicted orbital period, the companion has to be located at a
projected separation mas with a spectral type later than a F0V star.Comment: Accepted for publication in MNRA
Mid-infrared circumstellar emission of the long-period Cepheid l Carinae resolved with VLTI/MATISSE
Context. The nature of circumstellar envelopes (CSEs) around Cepheids is a matter of ongoing debate. The physical origin of their infrared (IR) excess could be shown to either be made up of a shell of ionized gas, a dust envelope, or a combination of both.Aims. This study is aimed at constraining the geometry and the IR excess of the environment of the bright long-period Cepheid l Car (P = 35.5 days) at mid-IR wavelengths in order to understand its physical nature.Methods. We first used photometric observations in various bands (from the visible domain to the infrared) and Spitzer Space Telescope spectroscopy to constrain the IR excess of l Car. Then we analyzed the VLTI/MATISSE measurements at a specific phase of observation in order to determine the flux contribution as well as the size and shape of the environment of the star in the L band. Finally, we tested the hypothesis of a shell of ionized gas in order to model the IR excess.Results. We report the first detection in the L band of a centro-symmetric extended emission around l Car, of about 1.7 R-star in full width at half maximum, producing an excess of about 7.0% in this band.This latter value is used to calibrate the IR excess found when comparing the photometric observations in various bands and quasi-static atmosphere models. In the N band, there is no clear evidence for dust emission from VLTI/MATISSE correlated flux and Spitzer data. On the other side, the modeled shell of ionized gas implies a more compact CSE (1.13 0.02 R-star) that is also fainter (IR excess of 1% in the L band).Conclusions. We provide new evidence supporting a compact CSE for l Car and we demonstrate the capabilities of VLTI/MATISSE for determining common properties of CSEs. While the compact CSE of l Car is likely to be of a gaseous nature, the tested model of a shell of ionized gas is not able to simultaneously reproduce the IR excess and the interferometric observations. Further Galactic Cepheid observations with VLTI/MATISSE are necessary for determining the properties of CSEs, which may also depend on both the pulsation period and the evolutionary state of the stars
Strong near-infrared emission in the sub-AU disk of the Herbig Ae star HD163296: evidence for refractory dust?
We present new long-baseline spectro-interferometric observations of the
HerbigAe star HD163296 obtained in the H and K bands with the AMBER instrument
at VLTI. The observations cover a range of spatial resolutions between 3 and 12
milli-arcseconds, with a spectral resolution of ~30. With a total of 1481
visibilities and 432 closure phases, they result in the best (u,v) coverage
achieved on a young star so far. The circumstellar material is resolved at the
sub-AU spatial scale and closure phase measurements indicate a small but
significant deviation from point-symmetry. We discuss the results assuming that
the near-infrared excess in HD163296 is dominated by the emission of a
circumstellar disk. A successful fit to the spectral energy distribution,
near-infrared visibilities and closure phases is found with a model where a
dominant contribution to the H and K band emissions arises from an optically
thin, smooth and point-symmetric region extending from about 0.1 to 0.45 AU. At
the latter distance from the star, silicates condense, the disk becomes
optically thick and develops a puffed-up rim, whose skewed emission can account
for the non-zero closure phases. We discuss the nature of the inner disk
emission and tentatively rule out dense molecular gas as well as optically thin
atomic or ionized gas as its possible origin. We propose instead that the inner
emission traces the presence of very refractory grains in a partially cleared
region, extending at least to 0.5 AU. If so, we may be observing the disk of
HD163296 just before it reaches the transition disk phase. However, we note
that the nature of the refractory grains or even the possibility for any grain
to survive at the very high temperatures we require (~2100-2300 K at 0.1 AU
from the star) is unclear and should be investigated further.Comment: 14 pages; 12 figures; accepted by A&
Dust in the inner regions of debris disks around A stars
We present infrared interferometric observations of the inner regions of two
A-star debris disks, beta Leo and zeta Lep, using the FLUOR instrument at the
CHARA interferometer on both short (30 m) and long (>200 m) baselines. For the
target stars, the short baseline visibilities are lower than expected for the
stellar photosphere alone, while those of a check star, delta Leo, are not. We
interpret this visibility offset of a few percent as a near-infrared excess
arising from dust grains which, due to the instrumental field of view, must be
located within several AU of the central star. For beta Leo, the near-infrared
excess producing grains are spatially distinct from the dust which produces the
previously known mid-infrared excess. For zeta Lep, the near-infrared excess
may be spatially associated with the mid-infrared excess producing material. We
present simple geometric models which are consistent with the near and
mid-infrared excess and show that for both objects, the near-infrared producing
material is most consistent with a thin ring of dust near the sublimation
radius with typical grain sizes smaller than the nominal radiation pressure
blowout radius. Finally, we discuss possible origins of the near-infrared
emitting dust in the context of debris disk evolution models.Comment: 20 pages, 2 figures, to appear in the Astrophysical Journa
HD 181068: A Red Giant in a Triply-Eclipsing Compact Hierarchical Triple System
Hierarchical triple systems comprise a close binary and a more distant
component. They are important for testing theories of star formation and of
stellar evolution in the presence of nearby companions. We obtained 218 days of
Kepler photometry of HD 181068 (magnitude of 7.1), supplemented by groundbased
spectroscopy and interferometry, which show it to be a hierarchical triple with
two types of mutual eclipses. The primary is a red giant that is in a 45-day
orbit with a pair of red dwarfs in a close 0.9-day orbit. The red giant shows
evidence for tidally-induced oscillations that are driven by the orbital motion
of the close pair. HD 181068 is an ideal target for studies of dynamical
evolution and testing tidal friction theories in hierarchical triple systems.Comment: 22 pages, including supporting on-line material. This is the author's
version of the work. It is posted here by permission of the AAAS for personal
use, not for redistribution. The definitive version was published in Science
Vol. 332 no. 6026 pp. 216-218 (8 April 2011), doi:10.1126/science.1201762.
http://www.sciencemag.org/content/332/6026/216.ful
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