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At least 667 records · Page 37
All sourcesNASA NTRSDOE OSTI
NASA NTRS1983

X-ray emission from cataclysmic variables

X-ray observations of cataclysmic variables and theoretical work on X-ray emission from them are reviewed, emphasizing recent developments. Observations of luminosities and space densities, X-ray spectra and temporal behavior, and X-ray emitting cataclysmic variables in globular clusters are addressed. The relationship of disk and radial accretion to X-ray emission is qualitatively considered, and the spectra and correlation between spectral temperature and luminosity are examined for magnetic and nonmagnetic stars. The relationship between ionization structure and line features is summarized, and nuclear burning and electron conduction are briefly addressed. Important issues concerning X-ray emission from cataclysmic variables are discussed, including magnetic fields, the origin of hard and soft X-rays, the soft X-ray puzzle in AM Her stars, nuclear burning, long-period pulsing sources, cyclotron-dominated sources, high-luminosity sources, and the stability of accretion flow.

Lamb, D. Q.↗
NASA NTRS2000

A Dream of a Mission: Stellar Imager and Seismic Probe

The Stellar Imager and Seismic Probe (SISP) is a mission to understand the various effects of magnetic fields of stars, the dynamos that generate them, and the internal structure and dynamics of the stars in which they exist. The ultimate goal is to achieve the best-possible forecasting of solar activity on times scales ranging up to decades, and an understanding of the impact of stellar magnetic activity on astrobiology and life in the Universe. The road to that goal will revolutionize our understanding of stars and stellar systems, the building blocks of the Universe. SISP will zoom in on what today - with few exceptions - we only know as point sources, revealing processes never before seen, thus providing a tool to astrophysics as fundamental as the microscope is to the study of life on Earth. SISP is an ultraviolet aperture-synthesis imager with 8-10 telescopes with meter-class apertures, and a central hub with focal-plane instrumentation that allows spectrophotometry in passbands as narrow as a few Angstroms up to hundreds of Angstroms. SISP will image stars and binaries with one hundred to one thousand resolution elements on their surface, and sound their interiors through asteroseismology to image internal structure, differential rotation, and large-scale circulations; this will provide accurate knowledge of stellar structure and evolution and complex transport processes, and will impact numerous branches of (astro)physics ranging from the Big Bang to the future of the Universe. Fitting naturally within the NASA long-term time line, SISP complements defined missions, and with them will show us entire other solar systems, from the central star to their orbiting planets.

Carpenter, Kenneth G.↗
DOE OSTI2014

The G+M eclipsing binary V530 Orionis: a stringent test of magnetic stellar evolution models for low-mass stars

We report extensive photometric and spectroscopic observations of the 6.1 day period, G+M-type detached double-lined eclipsing binary V530 Ori, an important new benchmark system for testing stellar evolution models for low-mass stars. We determine accurate masses and radii for the components with errors of 0.7% and 1.3%, as follows: M {sub A} = 1.0038 ± 0.0066 M {sub ☉}, M {sub B} = 0.5955 ± 0.0022 M {sub ☉}, R {sub A} = 0.980 ± 0.013 R {sub ☉}, and R {sub B} = 0.5873 ± 0.0067 R {sub ☉}. The effective temperatures are 5890 ± 100 K (G1 V) and 3880 ± 120 K (M1 V), respectively. A detailed chemical analysis probing more than 20 elements in the primary spectrum shows the system to have a slightly subsolar abundance, with [Fe/H] = –0.12 ± 0.08. A comparison with theory reveals that standard models underpredict the radius and overpredict the temperature of the secondary, as has been found previously for other M dwarfs. On the other hand, models from the Dartmouth series incorporating magnetic fields are able to match the observations of the secondary star at the same age as the primary (∼3 Gyr) with a surface field strength of 2.1 ± 0.4 kG when using a rotational dynamo prescription, or 1.3 ± 0.4 kG with a turbulent dynamo approach, not far from our empirical estimate for this star of 0.83 ± 0.65 kG. The observations are most consistent with magnetic fields playing only a small role in changing the global properties of the primary. The V530 Ori system thus provides an important demonstration that recent advances in modeling appear to be on the right track to explain the long-standing problem of radius inflation and temperature suppression in low-mass stars.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

WHAT DETERMINES THE DENSITY STRUCTURE OF MOLECULAR CLOUDS? A CASE STUDY OF ORION B WITH HERSCHEL

A key parameter to the description of all star formation processes is the density structure of the gas. In this Letter, we make use of probability distribution functions (PDFs) of Herschel column density maps of Orion B, Aquila, and Polaris, obtained with the Herschel Gould Belt survey (HGBS). We aim to understand which physical processes influence the PDF shape, and with which signatures. The PDFs of Orion B (Aquila) show a lognormal distribution for low column densities until A{sub V} {approx} 3 (6), and a power-law tail for high column densities, consistent with a {rho}{proportional_to}r {sup -2} profile for the equivalent spherical density distribution. The PDF of Orion B is broadened by external compression due to the nearby OB stellar aggregates. The PDF of a quiescent subregion of the non-star-forming Polaris cloud is nearly lognormal, indicating that supersonic turbulence governs the density distribution. But we also observe a deviation from the lognormal shape at A{sub V} > 1 for a subregion in Polaris that includes a prominent filament. We conclude that (1) the point where the PDF deviates from the lognormal form does not trace a universal A{sub V} -threshold for star formation, (2) statistical density fluctuations, intermittency, and magnetic fields can cause excess from the lognormal PDF at an early cloud formation stage, (3) core formation and/or global collapse of filaments and a non-isothermal gas distribution lead to a power-law tail, and (4) external compression broadens the column density PDF, consistent with numerical simulations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1988

Compact non-thermal radio emission from B-peculiar stars

Some stars hotter than 10,000 K show propensity for unusual surface abundances and excessive magnetic fields. These peculiar stars, Ap and Bp in the spectral nomenclature, show unusually prominent absorption lines of heavier elements. Rapid rotation and strong magnetic fields are revealed by line shapes and Zeeman splitting. VLBI is here used to directly probe the source size and brightness temperature of weak radio emission recently discovered from two isolated Bp stars, sigma Orionis E and HD37017. The emitting zone for each star is no more than 6 stellar diameters in extent, reflecting brightness temperatures of more than one billion K. Such high surface brightness resembles gyrosynchrotron radiation from mildly relativistic electrons trapped in the strong magnetic fields surrounding these stars. Compact radio radiation from these two stars presents new opportunities for probing the physical environments of early-type stars and for precise radio astrometry.

Phillips, R. B.↗
DOE OSTI2022

The Davis–Chandrasekhar–Fermi method revisited

ABSTRACT Despite the rich observational results on interstellar magnetic fields in star-forming regions, it is still unclear how dynamically significant the magnetic fields are at varying physical scales, because direct measurement of the field strength is observationally difficult. The Davis–Chandrasekhar–Fermi (DCF) method has been the most commonly used method to estimate the magnetic field strength from polarization data. It is based on the assumption that gas turbulent motion is the driving source of field distortion via linear Alfvén waves. In this work, using MHD simulations of star-forming clouds, we test the validity of the assumption underlying the DCF method by examining its accuracy in the real 3D space. Our results suggest that the DCF relation between turbulent kinetic energy and magnetic energy fluctuation should be treated as a statistical result instead of a local property. We then develop and investigate several modifications to the original DCF method using synthetic observations, and propose new recipes to improve the accuracy of DCF-derived magnetic field strength. We further note that the biggest uncertainty in the DCF analysis may come from the linewidth measurement instead of the polarization observation, especially since the line-of-sight gas velocity can be used to estimate the gas volume density, another critical parameter in the DCF method.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1998

Relating Stellar Cycle Periods to Dynamo Calculations

Stellar magnetic activity in slowly rotating stars is often cyclic, with the period of the magnetic cycle depending critically on the rotation rate and the convective turnover time of the star. Here we show that the interpretation of this law from dynamo models is not a simple task. It is demonstrated that the period is (unsurprisingly) sensitive to the precise type of non-linearity employed. Moreover the calculation of the wave-speed of plane-wave solutions does not (as was previously supposed) give an indication of the magnetic period in a more realistic dynamo model, as the changes in length-scale of solutions are not easily captured by this approach. Progress can be made, however, by considering a realistic two-dimensional model, in which the radial length-scale of waves is included. We show that it is possible in this case to derive a more robust relation between cycle period and dynamo number. For all the non-linearities considered in the most realistic model, the magnetic cycle period is a decreasing function of IDI (the amplitude of the dynamo number). However, discriminating between different non-linearities is difficult in this case and care must therefore be taken before advancing explanations for the magnetic periods of stars.

Tobias, S. M.↗
DOE OSTI2016

AGE dependence of wind properties for solar-type stars: a 3D study

Young and rapidly rotating stars are known for intense, dynamo-generated magnetic fields. Spectropolarimetric observations of those stars in precisely aged clusters are key input for gyrochronology and magnetochronology. We use Zeeman Doppler imaging maps of several young K-type stars of similar mass and radius but with various ages and rotational periods to perform three-dimensional (3D) numerical MHD simulations of their coronae and follow the evolution of their magnetic properties with age. Those simulations yield the coronal structure as well as the instant torque exerted by the magnetized, rotating wind on the star. As stars get older, we find that the angular momentum loss decreases with Ω{sub ⋆}{sup 3}, which is the reason for the convergence on the Skumanich law. For the youngest stars of our sample, the angular momentum loss shows signs of saturation around 8Ω{sub ⊙}, which is a common value used in spin evolution models for K-type stars. We compare these results to semianalytical models and existing braking laws. We observe a complex wind-speed distribution for the youngest stars with slow, intermediate, and fast wind components, which are the result of interaction with intense and nonaxisymmetric magnetic fields. Consequently, in our simulations, the stellar wind structure in the equatorial plane of young stars varies significantly from a solar configuration, delivering insight about the past of the solar system interplanetary medium.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

THE SPIN-DOWN OF PSR J0821-4300 AND PSR J1210-5226: CONFIRMATION OF CENTRAL COMPACT OBJECTS AS ANTI-MAGNETARS

Using XMM-Newton and Chandra, we measure period derivatives for the second and third known pulsars in the class of central compact objects (CCOs) in supernova remnants, proving that these young neutron stars have exceptionally weak dipole magnetic field components. For the 112 ms PSR J0821-4300 in Puppis A, P-dot = (9.28{+-}0.36) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -18}. Its proper motion, {mu} = 61 {+-} 9 mas yr{sup -1}, was also measured using Chandra. This contributes a kinematic term to the period derivative via the Shklovskii effect, which is subtracted from P-dot to derive dipole B{sub s} = 2.9 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 10} G, a value similar to that of the first measured CCO, PSR J1852+0040 in Kes 79, which has B{sub s} = 3.1 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 10} G. Antipodal surface hot spots with different temperatures and areas are deduced from the X-ray spectrum and pulse profiles. Paradoxically, such nonuniform surface temperature appears to require strong crustal magnetic fields, probably toroidal or quadrupolar components much stronger than the external dipole. A spectral feature, consisting of either an emission line at Almost-Equal-To 0.75 keV or an absorption line at Almost-Equal-To 0.46 keV, is modulated in strength with the rotation. It may be due to a cyclotron process in a magnetic field on the surface that is slightly stronger than the dipole deduced from the spin-down. We also timed anew the 424 ms PSR J1210-5226, resolving previous ambiguities about its spin-down rate. Its P-dot is (2.22 {+-} 0.02) Multiplication-Sign 10{sup -17}, corresponding to B{sub s} = 9.8 Multiplication-Sign 10{sup 10} G. This is also compatible with a cyclotron resonance interpretation of its prominent absorption line at 0.7 keV and its harmonics. These results deepen the mystery of the origin and evolution of CCOs: Why are their numerous descendants not evident?.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2014

Stability of Hall equilibria in neutron star crusts

In the solid crusts of neutron stars, the advection of the magnetic field by the current-carrying electrons, an effect known as Hall drift, should play a very important role as the ions remain essentially fixed (as long as the solid does not break). Although Hall drift preserves the magnetic field energy, it has been argued that it may drive a turbulent cascade to scales at which ohmic dissipation becomes effective, allowing a much faster decay in objects with very strong fields. On the other hand, it has been found that there are 'Hall equilibria', i.e., field configurations that are unaffected by Hall drift. Here we address the crucial question of the stability of these equilibria through axially symmetric (two-dimensional (2D)) numerical simulations of Hall drift and ohmic diffusion, with the simplifying assumption of uniform electron density and conductivity. We demonstrate the 2D stability of a purely poloidal equilibrium, for which ohmic dissipation makes the field evolve toward an attractor state through adjacent stable configurations, around which damped oscillations occur. For this field, the decay scales with the ohmic timescale. We also study the case of an unstable equilibrium consisting of both poloidal and toroidal field components that are confined within the crust. This field evolves into a stable configuration, which undergoes damped oscillations superimposed on a slow evolution toward an attractor, just as the purely poloidal one.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

Global simulations of protoplanetary disks with OHMIC resistivity and ambipolar diffusion

Protoplanetary disks (PPDs) are believed to accrete onto their central T Tauri star because of magnetic stresses. Recently published shearing box simulations indicate that Ohmic resistivity, ambipolar diffusion (AD) and the Hall effect all play important roles in disk evolution. In the presence of a vertical magnetic field, the disk remains laminar between 1–5 AU, and a magnetocentrifugal disk wind forms that provides an important mechanism for removing angular momentum. Questions remain, however, about the establishment of a true physical wind solution in the shearing box simulations because of the symmetries inherent in the local approximation. We present global MHD simulations of PPDs that include Ohmic resistivity and AD, where the time-dependent gas-phase electron and ion fractions are computed under FUV and X-ray ionization with a simplified recombination chemistry. Our results show that the disk remains laminar, and that a physical wind solution arises naturally in global disk models. The wind is sufficiently efficient to explain the observed accretion rates. Furthermore, the ionization fraction at intermediate disk heights is large enough for magneto-rotational channel modes to grow and subsequently develop into belts of horizontal field. Depending on the ionization fraction, these can remain quasi-global, or break-up into discrete islands of coherent field polarity. The disk models we present here show a dramatic departure from our earlier models including Ohmic resistivity only. It will be important to examine how the Hall effect modifies the evolution, and to explore the influence this has on the observational appearance of such systems, and on planet formation and migration.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2015

GRB 080503 LATE AFTERGLOW RE-BRIGHTENING: SIGNATURE OF A MAGNETAR-POWERED MERGER-NOVA

GRB 080503 is a short gamma-ray burst (GRB) detected by Swift and has been classified as a GRB originating from a compact star merger. The soft extended emission and the simultaneous late re-brightening in both the X-ray and optical afterglow light curves raise interesting questions regarding its physical origin. We show that the broadband data of GRB 080503 can be well explained within the framework of the double neutron star merger model, provided that the merger remnant is a rapidly rotating massive neutron star with an extremely high magnetic field (i.e., a millisecond magnetar). We show that the late optical re-brightening is consistent with the emission from a magnetar-powered “merger-nova.” This adds one more case to the growing sample of merger-novae associated with short GRBs. The soft extended emission and the late X-ray excess emission are well connected through a magnetar dipole spin-down luminosity evolution function, suggesting that direct magnetic dissipation is the mechanism to produce these X-rays. The X-ray emission initially leaks from a hole in the merger ejecta pierced by the short GRB jet. The hole subsequently closes after the magnetar spins down and the magnetic pressure drops below ram pressure. The X-ray photons are then trapped behind the merger-nova ejecta until the ejecta becomes optically thin at a later time. This explains the essentially simultaneous re-brightening in both the optical and X-ray light curves. Within this model, future gravitational-wave sources could be associated with a bright X-ray counterpart along with the merger-nova, even if the short GRB jet beams away from Earth.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1989

Solar and stellar observations from the South Pole

It is noted that an astronomical observatory located at the geographic South Pole could provide significant new insights into the physical bases of stellar variability by monitoring stars for lengthy periods of time with minimal interruptions by the day-night cycle. Three broad topics that could be studied with monitoring techniques are discussed: helioseismology, asteroseismology, and magnetic phenomena on stars. Consideration is given to comparisons with studies of solarlike active phenomena on stars utilizing high-resolution spectroscopy in the optical and ultraviolet, combined with X-ray and radio observations.

Linsky, Jeffrey L.↗
DOE OSTI2016

MAGNETIC GRAIN TRAPPING AND THE HOT EXCESSES AROUND EARLY-TYPE STARS

A significant fraction of main sequence stars observed interferometrically in the near-infrared have slightly extended components that have been attributed to very hot dust. To match the spectrum appears to require the presence of large numbers of very small (<200 nm in radius) dust grains. However, particularly for the hotter stars, it has been unclear how such grains can be retained close to the star against radiation pressure force. We find that the expected weak stellar magnetic fields are sufficient to trap nm-sized dust grains in epicyclic orbits for a few weeks or longer, sufficient to account for the hot excess emission. Our models provide a natural explanation for the requirement that the hot excess dust grains be smaller than 200 nm. They also suggest that magnetic trapping is more effective for rapidly rotating stars, consistent with the average vsini measurements of stars with hot excesses being larger (at ∼2σ) than those for stars without such excesses.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
DOE OSTI2013

ANALYSIS OF DETACHED ECLIPSING BINARIES NEAR THE TURNOFF OF THE OPEN CLUSTER NGC 7142

We analyze extensive BVR{sub C}I{sub C} photometry and radial velocity measurements for three double-lined deeply eclipsing binary stars in the field of the old open cluster NGC 7142. The short period (P = 1.9096825 days) detached binary V375 Cep is a high probability cluster member, and has a total eclipse of the secondary star. The characteristics of the primary star (M = 1.288 {+-} 0.017 M{sub Sun }) at the cluster turnoff indicate an age of 3.6 Gyr (with a random uncertainty of 0.25 Gyr), consistent with earlier analysis of the color-magnitude diagram. The secondary star (M = 0.871 {+-} 0.008 M{sub Sun }) is not expected to have evolved significantly, but its radius is more than 10% larger than predicted by models. Because this binary system has a known age, it is useful for testing the idea that radius inflation can occur in short period binaries for stars with significant convective envelopes due to the inhibition of energy transport by magnetic fields. The brighter star in the binary also produces a precision estimate of the distance modulus, independent of reddening estimates: (m - M){sub V} = 12.86 {+-} 0.07. The other two eclipsing binary systems are not cluster members, although one of the systems (V2) could only be conclusively ruled out as a present or former member once the stellar characteristics were determined. That binary is within 0. Degree-Sign 5 of edge-on, is in a fairly long-period eccentric binary, and contains two almost indistinguishable stars. The other binary (V1) has a small but nonzero eccentricity (e = 0.038) in spite of having an orbital period under 5 days.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗
NASA NTRS1995

Photon-splitting limits to the hardness of emission in strongly magnetized soft gamma repeaters

Soft gamma repeaters are characterized by recurrent activity consisting of short-duration outbursts of high-energy emission that is typically of temperature less than 40 keV. One recent model of repeaters is that they originate in the environs of neutron stars with superstrong magnetic fields, perhaps greater than 10(exp 14) G. In such fields, the exotic process of magnetic photon splitting gamma yields gamma gamma acts very effectively to reprocess gamma-ray radiation down to hard X-ray energies. In this Letter, the action of photon splitting is considered in some detail, via the solution of photon kinetic equations, determining how it limits the hardness of emission in strongly magnetized repeaters, and thereby obtaining observational constraints to the field in SGR 1806-20.

Baring, Matthew G.↗
NASA NTRS2012

An Analysis of the Rapidly Rotating Bp star HD 133880

HD 133880 is a rapidly rotating chemically peculiar B-type (Bp) star (nu sin i approx = 103km/s) and is host to one of the strongest magnetic fields of any Ap/Bp star. A member of the Upper Centaurus Lupus association, it is a star with a well-determined age of 16 Myr. 12 new spectra, four of which are polarimetric, obtained from the FEROS, ESPaDOnS and HARPS instruments, provide sufficient material from which to re-evaluate the magnetic field and obtain a first approximation to the atmospheric abundance distributions of He, O, Mg, Si, Ti. Cr, Fe, Ni, Pr and Nd. An abundance analysis was carried out using ZEEMAN, a program which synthesizes spectral line profiles for stars with permeating magnetic fields. The magnetic field structure was characterized by a colinear multipole expansion from the observed variations of the longitudinal and surface fields with rotational phase. Both magnetic hemispheres are clearly visible during the stellar rotation, and thus a three-ring abundance distribution model encompassing both magnetic poles and magnetic equator with equal spans in colatitude was adopted. Using the new magnetic field measurements and optical photometry together with previously published data, we refine the period of HD 133880 to P = 0.877 476 +/- 0.000009 d. Our simple axisymmetric magnetic field model is based on a predominantly quadrupolar component that roughly describes the field variations. Using spectrum synthesis, we derived mean abundances for O, Mg, Si, Ti, Cr, Fe and Pr. All elements; except Mg, are overabundant compared to the Son. Mg appears to be approximately uniform over the stellar surface, while all other elements are more abundant in the negative magnetic hemisphere than in the positive magnetic hemisphere. In contrast to most Ap/Bp stars which show an underabundance in 0, in HD 133880 this element is clearly overabundant compared to the solar abundance ratio. In studying the Ha and Paschen lines in the optical spectra, we could not unambiguously detect information about the magnetosphere of HD 133880. However, radio emission data at both 3 and 6 cm suggest that the magnetospheric plasma is held in rigid rotation with the star by the magnetic field and further supported against collapse by the rapid rotation. Subtle differences in the shapes of the optically thick radio light curves at 3 and 6 cm suggest that the large-scale magnetic field is not fully axisymmetric at large distances from the star.

Bailey, J. D.↗
DOE OSTI2017

Nonlinear QED effects in X-ray emission of pulsars

In the presence of strong magnetic fields near pulsars, the QED vacuum becomes a birefringent medium due to nonlinear QED interactions. Here, we explore the impact of the effective photon-photon interaction on the polarization evolution of photons propagating through the magnetized QED vacuum of a pulsar. We solve the quantum Boltzmann equation within the framework of the Euler-Heisenberg Lagrangian to find the evolution of the Stokes parameters. We find that linearly polarized X-ray photons propagating outward in the magnetosphere of a rotating neutron star can acquire high values for the circular polarization parameter. Meanwhile, it is shown that the polarization characteristics of photons besides photon energy depend strongly on parameters of the pulsars such as magnetic field strength, inclination angle and rotational period. Our results are clear predictions of QED vacuum polarization effects in the near vicinity of magnetic stars which can be tested with the upcoming X-ray polarimetric observations.

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS↗