233 research outputs found
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Quantitative Spectroscopy In 3D
The Advanced Spectrum Synthesis 3D Tool ASSET is introduced. ASSET allows for the accurate and fast calculation of spectra from 3D hydrodynamical models. To achieve the highest numerical accuracy 3(rd)-order Bezier interpolations are employed and all available information from the model grid with respect to the spacial and frequency resolution is exploited. ASSET is fully parallelized with OpenMP and MPI and highly optimized to run at about 25% of peak speed on workstations and clusters. The emergent flux for a single spectral line can be calculated from dozens of snapshots within a few minutes, and the whole spectrum (2 . 10(6) frequencies) can be calculated on a small cluster (a few hundred threads) within a day. The numerical methods, the serial optimization and the parallel implementation are described in some detail.Texas Advanced Computing Center (TACC
Asteroseismological constraints on the pulsating planetary nebula nucleus (PG1159-type) RX J2117.1+3412
We present asteroseismological inferences on RX J2117.1+3412, the hottest
known pulsating PG1159 star. Our results are based on full PG1159 evolutionary
models recently presented by Miller Bertolami & Althaus (2006). We performed
extensive computations of adiabatic g-mode pulsation periods on PG1159
evolutionary models with stellar masses ranging from 0.530 to 0.741 Mo. PG1159
stellar models are extracted from the complete evolution of progenitor stars
started from the ZAMS, through the thermally pulsing AGB and born-again phases
to the domain of the PG 1159 stars. We constrained the stellar mass of RX
J2117.1+3412 by comparing the observed period spacing with the asymptotic
period spacing and with the average of the computed period spacings. We also
employed the individual observed periods to find a representative seismological
model. We derive a stellar mass of 0.56-0.57 Mo from the period spacing data
alone. In addition, we found a best-fit model representative for RX
J2117.1+3412 with an effective temperature of 163,400 K, a stellar mass of
0.565 Mo, and a surface gravity log g= 6.61. The derived stellar luminosity and
radius are log(L/Lo)= 3.36 and log(R/Ro)= -1.23, respectively, and the He-rich
envelope thickness is Menv= 0.02 Mo. We derive a seismic distance of 452 pc and
a linear size of the planetary nebula of 1.72 pc. These inferences seem to
solve the discrepancy between the RX J2117.1+3412 evolutionary timescale and
the size of the nebula. All of the seismological tools we use concur to the
conclusion that RX J2117.1+3412 must have a stellar mass of 0.565 Mo much in
agreement with recent asteroseismology studies and in clear conflict with the
predictions of spectroscopy plus evolutionary tracks.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figures, 2 tables. Accepted for publication in Astronomy
and Astrophysics. Erratum available as a separate fil
Granulation across the HR diagram
We have obtained ultra-high quality spectra (R=180,000; S/N>300) with
unprecedented wavelength coverage (4400 to 7400 A) for a number of stars
covering most of the HR diagram in order to test the predictions of models of
stellar surface convection. Line bisectors and core wavelength shifts are both
measured and modeled, allowing us to validate and/or reveal the limitations of
state-of-the-art hydrodynamic model atmospheres of different stellar
parameters. We show the status of our project and preliminary results.Comment: 4 pages, 3 figures; proceedings article for Joint Discussion 10 at
the IAU General Assembly, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, August 200
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
Convective line shifts for the Gaia RVS from the CIFIST 3D model atmosphere grid
To derive space velocities of stars along the line of sight from wavelength
shifts in stellar spectra requires accounting for a number of second-order
effects. For most stars, gravitational redshifts, convective blueshifts, and
transverse stellar motion are the dominant contributors. We provide theoretical
corrections for the net velocity shifts due to convection expected for the
measurements from the Gaia Radial Velocity Spectrometer (RVS). We used a set of
three-dimensional time-dependent simulations of stellar surface convection
computed with CO5BOLD to calculate spectra of late-type stars in the Gaia RVS
range and to infer the net velocity offset that convective motions will induce
in radial velocities derived by cross-correlation. The net velocity shifts
derived by cross-correlation depend both on the wavelength range and spectral
resolution of the observations. Convective shifts for Gaia RVS observations are
less than 0.1 km/s for late-K-type stars, and they increase with stellar mass,
reaching about 0.3 km/s or more for early F-type dwarfs. This tendency is the
result of an increase with effective temperature in both temperature and
velocity fluctuations in the line-forming region. Our simulations also indicate
that the net RVS convective shifts can be positive (i.e. redshifts) in some
cases. Overall, the blueshifts weaken slightly with increasing surface gravity,
and are enhanced at low metallicity. Gravitational redshifts amount up to 0.7
km/s and dominate convective blueshifts for dwarfs, but become much weaker for
giants.Comment: 13 pages, to appear in A&A; model fluxes available from
ftp://leda.as.utexas.edu/pub/callende/Gaia3D and soon from CD
Sodium Absorption From the Exoplanetary Atmosphere of HD189733b Detected in the Optical Transmission Spectrum
We present the first ground-based detection of sodium absorption in the
transmission spectrum of an extrasolar planet. Absorption due to the atmosphere
of the extrasolar planet HD189733b is detected in both lines of the NaI
doublet. High spectral resolution observations were taken of eleven transits
with the High Resolution Spectrograph (HRS) on the 9.2 meter Hobby-Eberly
Telescope (HET). The NaI absorption in the transmission spectrum due to
HD189733b is (-67.2 +/- 20.7) x 10^-5 deeper in the ``narrow'' spectral band
that encompasses both lines relative to adjacent bands. The 1-sigma error
includes both random and systematic errors, and the detection is >3-sigma. This
amount of relative absorption in NaI for HD189733b is ~3x larger than detected
for HD209458b by Charbonneau et al. (2002), and indicates these two
hot-Jupiters may have significantly different atmospheric properties.Comment: 12 pages, 2 figures; Accepted for publication in ApJ Letter
Hydrodynamic model atmospheres for WR stars: Self-consistent modeling of a WC star wind
We present the first non-LTE atmosphere models for WR stars that incorporate
a self-consistent solution of the hydrodynamic equations. The models account
for iron-group line-blanketing and clumping, and compute the hydrodynamic
structure of a radiatively driven wind consistently with the non-LTE radiation
transport in the co-moving frame. We construct a self-consistent wind model
that reproduces all observed properties of an early-type WC star (WC5). We find
that the WR-type mass-loss is initiated at high optical depth by the so-called
`Hot Iron Bump' opacities (Fe IX-XVI). The acceleration of the outer wind
regions is performed by iron-group ions of lower excitation in combination with
C and O. Consequently, the wind structure shows two acceleration regions, one
close to the hydrostatic wind base in the optically thick part of the
atmosphere, and another farther out in the wind. In addition to the radiative
acceleration, the `Iron Bump' opacities are responsible for an intense heating
of deep atmospheric layers. We find that the observed narrow OVI-emissions in
the optical spectra of WC stars originate from this region. By their dependence
on the clumping factor we gain important information about the location where
the density inhomogeneities in WR-winds start to develop.Comment: accepted by A&
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