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Constraining Disk Parameters of Be Stars using Narrowband Hα Interferometry with the Navy Prototype Optical Interferometer
Interferometric observations of two well-known Be stars, γ Cas andφ Per, were collected and analyzed to determine the spatialcharacteristics of their circumstellar regions. The observations wereobtained using the Navy Prototype Optical Interferometer equipped withcustom-made narrowband filters. The filters isolate the Hαemission line from the nearby continuum radiation, which results in anincreased contrast between the interferometric signature due to theHα-emitting circumstellar region and the central star. Because thenarrowband filters do not significantly attenuate the continuumradiation at wavelengths 50 nm or more away from the line, theinterferometric signal in the Hα channel is calibrated withrespect to the continuum channels. The observations used in this studyrepresent the highest spatial resolution measurements of theHα-emitting regions of Be stars obtained to date. Theseobservations allow us to demonstrate for the first time that theintensity distribution in the circumstellar region of a Be star cannotbe represented by uniform disk or ringlike structures, whereas aGaussian intensity distribution appears to be fully consistent with ourobservations.
| Properties and nature of Be stars. 24. Better data and model for the Be+F binary V360 Lacertae
Aims.We include existing photometric and spectroscopic material with newobservations in a detailed study of the Be+F binary V360Lac. Methods: .We used the programs FOTEL and KOREL toderive an improved linear ephemeris and to disentangle the line profilesof both binary components and telluric lines. The BINSYN software suite(described in the paper) is used to calculate synthetic light curves andspectra to fit the {UBV} photometry, an {IUE} spectrum, blue and redground-based spectra, and observed radial-velocity curves.Results: .The observations provide evidence of circumstellar matter inthe system. The system model shows that the Be primary star iscritically rotating, and that the synchronously rotating secondary starfills its Roche lobe. The primary star has a mass of7.45ȯ. Radial-velocity observations establish a massratio of 0.163. Light curve synthesis demonstrates that the observedlight curves are controlled largely by tidal distortion and irradiationof the massive primary by the less massive secondary. Synthetic spectrafit both blue and red observed spectra with the exception of spectrallines affected by circumstellar matter in the system. The syntheticspectra allow for gravity darkening and are consistent with criticalrotation of the primary. Synthetic spectrum fits to a dereddened {IUE}spectrum produce a calculated system distance of 512 pc. This distanceis 2σ beyond the Hipparcos distance.
| Observations of Hα, iron, and oxygen lines in B, Be, and shell stars
We carried out a spectroscopic survey of several B, Be, and shell starsin optical and near-infrared regions. Line profiles of the Hα lineand of selected Fe II and O I lines are presented.
| Is the model of one-armed oscillations able to explain the long-term V/R changes of Be stars?
Context: .Many scientists studying Be stars currently adopt the model ofone-armed oscillations as the correct explanation of the cycliclong-term {V/R} variations observed for a number of Be stars. We testthe ability of this model to be used for the predictions of V/Rvariations in real observed Be stars. Aims: .The behavior of theone-armed oscillations can be described as a solution of linearizedhydrodynamical equations with the presence of "distorted" gravitationalpotential and a radiation force. Methods: .We developed a newcomputer program to model one-armed oscillations in Be star disks, whichincludes both the pressure force and the quadrupole term in thegravitational potential, related to the obliquity of a rapidly rotatingstar inside the disk. Moreover, we slightly improved the model in aneffort to decrease the number of input parameters with the help of NLTEstellar atmosphere models. Results: .We carried out detailed testsof the dependence of V/R "periods" predicted by the model on allindividual input parameters. We arrived at the following results: (1)the model has great potential to explain not only the cause of thecyclic long-term V/R changes but also some of the observed statisticalproperties of the phenomenon. (2) The model in its present linear formcannot be considered as proven. Its ability to predict the duration ofV/R cycles for individual well observed Be stars is insufficient.Changing some of the input parameters of the model, which are stillloosely constrained by observations and/on current understanding of thedisks, like the radial density distribution in the disk, one can easilyarrive at any desired cycle length from, say, 1 to 20 years.Conclusions: . Clearly, a much more sophisticated non-linear andself-consistent model of disk structure and its oscillations will beneeded before a truly quantitative test of a one-armed model vs.observations will be possible.
| On the evolutionary status of Be stars. I. Field Be stars near the Sun
A sample of 97 galactic field Be stars were studied by taking intoaccount the effects induced by the fast rotation on their fundamentalparameters. All program stars were observed in the BCDspectrophotometric system in order to minimize the perturbationsproduced by the circumstellar environment on the spectral photosphericsignatures. This is one of the first attempts at determining stellarmasses and ages by simultaneously using model atmospheres andevolutionary tracks, both calculated for rotating objects. The stellarages (τ) normalized to the respective inferred time that eachrotating star can spend in the main sequence phase (τ_MS) reveal amass-dependent trend. This trend shows that: a) there are Be starsspread over the whole interval 0 τ/τ_MS 1 of themain sequence evolutionary phase; b) the distribution of points in the(τ/τMS,M/Mȯ) diagram indicates thatin massive stars (M 12~Mȯ) the Be phenomenon ispresent at smaller τ/τ_MS age ratios than for less massive stars(M 12~Mȯ). This distribution can be due to: i)higher mass-loss rates in massive objets, which can act to reduce thesurface fast rotation; ii) circulation time scales to transport angularmomentum from the core to the surface, which are longer the lower thestellar mass.
| Deuterated molecular hydrogen in the Galactic ISM. New observations along seven translucent sightlines
We present column density measurements of the HD molecule in theinterstellar gas toward 17 Galactic stars. The values for the seven mostheavily reddened sightlines, with E(B-V) = 0.38-0.72, are derived fromobservations with the Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE). Theother ten values are from a reanalysis of spectra obtained withCopernicus. In all cases, high-resolution ground-based observations of KI and/or the CH molecule were used to constrain the gas velocitystructure and to correct for saturation effects. Comparisons of thecolumn densities HD, CH, CN, and K I in these 17 sightlines indicatethat HD is most tightly correlated with CH. Stringent lower limits tothe interstellar D/H ratio, derived from the HD/2H2 ratio,range from 3.7 × 10-7 to 4.3 × 10-6.Our results also suggest that the HD/H2 ratio increases withthe molecular fraction f(H2) and that the interstellar D/Hratio might be obtained from HD by probing clouds with f(H2) 1. Finally, we note an apparent relationship between the molecularfractions of hydrogen and deuterium.
| 59 Cyg - A Second Be Binary with a Hot, Compact Companion
Not Available
| Spectroscopy and Photometry of Be Stars During the Past Decade
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| Reanalysis of Copernicus Measurements of Interstellar Carbon Monoxide
We used archival data acquired with Copernicus to reexamine CO columndensities, as self-consistent oscillator strengths are now available.Our focus is on lines of sight containing modest amounts of molecularspecies. Our resulting column densities are small enough thatself-shielding from photodissociation does not occur in the cloudsprobed by the observations. While our sample shows that the columndensities of CO and H2 are related, no correspondence withthe CH column density is evident. The case for the CH+ columndensity is less clear. Recent chemical models for these sight linessuggest that CH is mainly a by-product of CH+ synthesis inlow-density gas. The models are most successful in reproducing theamounts of CO in the densest sight lines. Thus, much of the COabsorption must arise from denser clumps along the line of sight toaccount for the trend with H2.
| A potential φ Per-type (Be+sdO) binary: FY CMa
The spectrum of the Be star FY CMa is shown to vary periodically withP=37.26±0.03 d. The types of variation, exhibiting transientstrong shell phases and a radial-velocity variable He I emissioncomponent, suggest the star to be of the same type as φ Per, i.e.having an evolved hot companion ionizing the outer parts of theprimary's circumstellar disc where it faces the hot companion. Afterφ Per and the candidates 59 Cyg and HR 2142, this is only thefourth promising candidate, although such systems should be relativelyabundant. The similarities found between φ Per, 59 Cyg, and FY CMainclude a radial velocity-variable He I emission feature and aphase-locked V/R cycle. An ephemeris is given that allows a test of theproposed recurrent nature of a strong shell feature observed only in asingle spectrum at present.Based on observations collected at the South African AstronomicalObservatory.
| On the relation between diffuse bands and column densities of H2, CH and CO molecules
Mutual relations between column densities of H2, CH and COmolecules as well as between the latter and strengths of the major 5780and 5797 diffuse bands are presented and discussed. The CH radical seemsto be a good H2 tracer, possibly better than CO. It is alsodemonstrated that the molecular fraction of the H2 moleculeis correlated with an intensity ratio of 5797 and 5780 DIBs, suggestingthe possible formation of narrow DIB carriers in denser clouds,dominated by molecular hydrogen and reasonably shielded from ionizing UVradiation by small dust grains.Tables 1 and 2 are only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/414/949
| Classical Be Stars
Recent results for classical Be stars are reviewed and links to generalastrophysics are presented. Classical Be stars are B-type stars close tothe main sequence that exhibit line emission over the photosphericspectrum. The excess is attributed to a circumstellar gaseous componentthat is commonly accepted to be in the form of an equatorial disk. Since1988, when the last such review was published, major progress has beenmade. The geometry and kinematics of the circumstellar environment canbe best explained by a rotationally supported relatively thin disk withvery little outflow, consistent with interferometric observations. Thepresence of short-term periodic variability is restricted to the earliertype Be stars. This variation for at least some of these objects hasbeen shown to be due to nonradial pulsation. For at least one star,evidence for a magnetic field has been observed. The mechanismsresponsible for the production and dynamics of the circumstellar gas arestill not constrained. Observations of nonradial pulsation beatingphenomena connected to outbursts point toward a relevance of pulsation,but this mechanism cannot be generalized. Either the evidence that Bestars do not form a homogeneous group with respect to disk formation isgrowing or the short-term periodic variability is less important thanpreviously thought. The statistics of Be stars investigated in openclusters of the Milky Way and the Magellanic Clouds has reopened thequestion of the evolutionary status of Be stars. The central B star is afast rotator, although theoretical developments have revived thequestion of how high rotational rates are, so the commonly quoted meanvalue of about 70%-80% of the critical velocity may just be a lowerlimit. Be stars are in a unique position to make contributions toseveral important branches of stellar physics, e.g., asymmetricmass-loss processes, stellar angular momentum distribution evolution,astroseismology, and magnetic field evolution.
| Toward an adequate method to isolate spectroscopic families of diffuse interstellar bands
We divide some of the observed diffuse interstellar bands (DIBs) intofamilies that appear to have the spectral structure of single species.Three different methods are applied to separate such families, exploringthe best approach for future investigations of this type. Starting witha statistical treatment of the data, we found that statistical methodsby themselves give insufficient results. Two other methods of dataanalysis (`averaging equivalent widths' and `investigating the figureswith arranged spectrograms') were found to be more useful as tools forfinding the spectroscopic families of DIBs. On the basis of thesemethods, we suggest some candidates as `relatives' of 5780- and5797-Å bands.
| 3D mapping of the dense interstellar gas around the Local Bubble
We present intermediate results from a long-term program of mapping theneutral absorption characteristics of the local interstellar medium,motivated by the availability of accurate and consistent parallaxes fromthe Hipparcos satellite. Equivalent widths of the interstellar NaID-line doublet at 5890 Å are presented for the lines-of-sighttowards some 311 new target stars lying within ~ 350 pc of the Sun.Using these data, together with NaI absorption measurements towards afurther ~ 240 nearby targets published in the literature (for many ofthem, in the directions of molecular clouds), and the ~ 450lines-of-sight already presented by (Sfeir et al. \cite{sfeir99}), weshow 3D absorption maps of the local distribution of neutral gas towards1005 sight-lines with Hipparcos distances as viewed from a variety ofdifferent galactic projections.The data are synthesized by means of two complementary methods, (i) bymapping of iso-equivalent width contours, and (ii) by densitydistribution calculation from the inversion of column-densities, amethod devised by Vergely et al. (\cite{vergely01}). Our present dataconfirms the view that the local cavity is deficient in cold and neutralinterstellar gas. The closest dense and cold gas ``wall'', in the firstquadrant, is at ~ 55-60 pc. There are a few isolated clouds at closerdistance, if the detected absorption is not produced by circumstellarmaterial.The maps reveal narrow or wide ``interstellar tunnels'' which connectthe Local Bubble to surrounding cavities, as predicted by the model ofCox & Smith (1974). In particular, one of these tunnels, defined bystars at 300 to 600 pc from the Sun showing negligible sodiumabsorption, connects the well known CMa void (Gry et al. \cite{gry85}),which is part of the Local Bubble, with the supershell GSH 238+00+09(Heiles \cite{heiles98}). High latitude lines-of-sight with the smallestabsorption are found in two ``chimneys'', whose directions areperpendicular to the Gould belt plane. The maps show that the LocalBubble is ``squeezed'' by surrounding shells in a complicated patternand suggest that its pressure is smaller than in those expandingregions.We discuss the locations of several HI and molecular clouds. Usingcomparisons between NaI and HI or CO velocities, in some cases we areable to improve the constraints on their distances. According to thevelocity criteria, MBM 33-37, MBM 16-18, UT 3-7, and MBM 54-55 arecloser than ~ 100 pc, and MBM 40 is closer than 80 pc. Dense HI cloudsare seen at less than 90 pc and 85 pc in the directions of the MBM 12and MBM 41-43 clouds respectively, but the molecular clouds themselvesmay be far beyond. The above closest molecular clouds are located at theneutral boundary of the Bubble. Only one translucent cloud, G192-67, isclearly embedded within the LB and well isolated.These maps of the distribution of local neutral interstellar NaI gas arealso briefly compared with the distribution of both interstellar dustand neutral HI gas within 300 pc.Tables 1 and 2 are only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp:cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/411/447
| Autocorrelation Analysis of Hipparcos Photometry of Short-Period Be Stars
We have used Hipparcos epoch photometry and a form of autocorrelationanalysis to investigate the amplitude and timescale of the short-periodvariability of 82 Be stars, including 46 Be stars that were analyzed byHubert & Floquet using Fourier and CLEAN analysis and 36 other Bestars that were suspected of short-period variability. Our method hasgiven useful information for about 84% of these stars; for the rest, thetime distribution of the Hipparcos epoch photometry limits thecapability of our technique.
| Koordinierte Zusammenarbeit zwischen den VdS-FG 'BAV' und 'Spektroskopie' ?
Not Available
| A Study of π Aquarii during a Quasi-normal Star Phase: Refined Fundamental Parameters and Evidence for Binarity
We present the results of recent multicolor photometric andhigh-resolution spectroscopic observations of the bright Be star πAqr. Observational data collected from the literature were used to studythe star's variations over the last four decades. The star is identifiedwith the IR sources F22227+0107 in the IRAS Faint Point Source Catalogand MSX5 G066.0066-44.7392 in the MSX Catalog. The variations in near-IRbrightness of π Aqr are found to be among the largest reported for Bestars. Since 1996, the star has shown only weak signs of circumstellaremission, which has allowed us to refine the fundamental stellarparameters: AV=0.15 mag, Teff=24,000 K, logg=3.9,and MV=-2.95 mag. A weak emission component of the Hαline has been detected during the recent quasi-normal star phase. Fromanalysis of the Hα line profiles, we find antiphased radialvelocity variations of the emission component and the photosphericabsorption, with a period of 84.1 days and semiamplitudes of 101.4 and16.7 km s-1, respectively. This result suggests that π Aqrmay be a binary system consisting of stars with masses ofM1sin3i=12.4Msolar,M2sin3i=2.0Msolar. We alsoestimate the orbital inclination angle to be between 50° and75°. We suggest that the photometric, spectroscopic, andpolarimetric variations observed during the second half of the 20thcentury may be due to variable mass transfer between the binarycomponents.
| Rotational Velocities of B Stars
We measured the projected rotational velocities of 1092 northern B starslisted in the Bright Star Catalogue (BSC) and calibrated them againstthe 1975 Slettebak et al. system. We found that the published values ofB dwarfs in the BSC average 27% higher than those standards. Only 0.3%of the stars have rotational velocities in excess of two-thirds of thebreakup velocities, and the mean velocity is only 25% of breakup,implying that impending breakup is not a significant factor in reducingrotational velocities. For the B8-B9.5 III-V stars the bimodaldistribution in V can be explained by a set of slowly rotating Ap starsand a set of rapidly rotating normal stars. For the B0-B5 III-V starsthat include very few peculiar stars, the distributions in V are notbimodal. Are the low rotational velocities of B stars due to theoccurrence of frequent low-mass companions, planets, or disks? Therotational velocities of giants originating from late B dwarfs areconsistent with their conservation of angular momentum in shells.However, we are puzzled by why the giants that originate from the earlyB dwarfs, despite having 3 times greater radii, have nearly the samerotational velocities. We find that all B-type primaries in binarieswith periods less than 2.4 days have synchronized rotational and orbitalmotions; those with periods between 2.4 and 5.0 days are rotating withina factor 2 of synchronization or are ``nearly synchronized.'' Thecorresponding period ranges for A-type stars are 4.9 and 10.5 days, ortwice as large. We found that the rotational velocities of the primariesare synchronized earlier than their orbits are circularized. The maximumorbital period for circularized B binaries is 1.5 days and for Abinaries is 2.5 days. For stars of various ages from 107.5 to1010.2 yr the maximum circularized periods are a smoothexponential function of age.
| An upper limit to the interstellar C5 abundance in translucent clouds
We have analyzed high resolution spectra of several slightly tomoderately reddened stars collected at two observatories: ESO (La Silla)and Terskol (Northern Caucasia), to estimate the abundance of theC5 molecule in the interstellar medium. We confirm thepresence of a feature near 4975 Å which appears to be a weak DIBrather than the predicted C5 band since the origin band near5109 Å remains invisible even in spectra of high signal-to-noiseratio ( ~ 2500) and spectral resolution (R ~ 220 000). This confirmsthat the C5 abundance in translucent interstellar clouds isvery low. We estimate its limit as low as 1011cm-2 in the scale E(B-V)=0.35 for ``zeta" type objects thatis two times lower than that of Maier et al. (2002). Based on datacollected at the ESO 3.6 m telescope operated on La Silla Observatory,Chile and 2-m telescope of the Terskol Observatory, Russia.
| Properties and nature of Be stars. XXI. The long-term and the orbital variations of V832 Cyg = 59 Cyg
An analysis of numerous homogenized UBV photoelectric observations andred spectra of the Be star V832 Cyg from several observatories led tothe following principal findings: 1. Pronounced long-term light andcolour variations of V832 Cyg result from a combination of two effects:from the gradual formation of a new Be envelope, and from an asymmetryand a slow revolution of the envelope (or its one-armed oscillation).The colour variations associated with the envelope formation arecharacterized by a positive correlation between brightness and emissionstrength, typical for stars which are not seen roughly equator-on. 2.The V magnitude observations prewhitened for the long-term changesfollow a sinusoidal orbital light curve with a small amplitude and aperiod of 28.1971d which is derived from observations spanning 43 years.This independently confirms a 12-year old suggestion that the star is aspectroscopic binary with a 29-d period. V832 Cyg thus becomes the fifthknown Be star with cyclic long-term V/R variations, the duplicity ofwhich has been proven, the four other cases being ζ Tau, V923 Aql,γ Cas and X Per. Therefore, the hypothesis that the long-term V/Rvariations may arise due to the attractive force of the binary companionat certain phases of the envelope formation is still worth consideringas a viable alternative to the model of one-armed oscillation. 3. Wehave shown that the RV and V/R variations of the Hα and He I 6678emission lines are all roughly in phase. In particular, the He I 6678emission also moves with the Be primary which differs from what wasfound for another Be binary, \varphi Per. 4. We derived the orbitalelements and found that in spite of the remaining uncertainties, thebasic physical properties of the 28.2d binary are well constrained. 5.The light minimum of the orbital light curve occurs at elongation whenthe Be star is approaching us and the object becomes bluest in (B-V) andreddest in (U-B) at the same time. This may indicate that a part of theoptically thick regions of the envelope is eclipsed at these orbitalphases. Guest investigator, Dominion Astrophysical Observatory, HerzbergInstitute of Astrophysics, National Research Council of Canada. Alsobased on observations from Castanet-Tolosan, Hvar, Ondřejov,Pic-du-Midi, Rozen, San Pedro Mártir, Toronto and Xing-LongObservatories and on photoelectric photometry by AAVSO members. Tables3, 5-7 are only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymousftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/387/580}
| Astrometric radial velocities. III. Hipparcos measurements of nearby star clusters and associations
Radial motions of stars in nearby moving clusters are determined fromaccurate proper motions and trigonometric parallaxes, without any use ofspectroscopy. Assuming that cluster members share the same velocityvector (apart from a random dispersion), we apply a maximum-likelihoodmethod on astrometric data from Hipparcos to compute radial and spacevelocities (and their dispersions) in the Ursa Major, Hyades, ComaBerenices, Pleiades, and Praesepe clusters, and for theScorpius-Centaurus, alpha Persei, and ``HIP 98321'' associations. Theradial motion of the Hyades cluster is determined to within 0.4 kms-1 (standard error), and that of its individual stars towithin 0.6 km s-1. For other clusters, Hipparcos data yieldastrometric radial velocities with typical accuracies of a few kms-1. A comparison of these astrometric values withspectroscopic radial velocities in the literature shows a good generalagreement and, in the case of the best-determined Hyades cluster, alsopermits searches for subtle astrophysical differences, such as evidencefor enhanced convective blueshifts of F-dwarf spectra, and decreasedgravitational redshifts in giants. Similar comparisons for the ScorpiusOB2 complex indicate some expansion of its associations, albeit slowerthan expected from their ages. As a by-product from the radial-velocitysolutions, kinematically improved parallaxes for individual stars areobtained, enabling Hertzsprung-Russell diagrams with unprecedentedaccuracy in luminosity. For the Hyades (parallax accuracy 0.3 mas), itsmain sequence resembles a thin line, possibly with wiggles in it.Although this main sequence has underpopulated regions at certaincolours (previously suggested to be ``Böhm-Vitense gaps''), suchare not visible for other clusters, and are probably spurious. Futurespace astrometry missions carry a great potential for absoluteradial-velocity determinations, insensitive to the complexities ofstellar spectra. Based on observations by the ESA Hipparcos satellite.Extended versions of Tables \ref{tab1} and \ref{tab2} are available inelectronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr(130.79.125.8) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/381/446
| Photometric Monitoring of Bright Be Stars. IV. 1996-1999
We report long-term UBV observations of 15 bright, active Be stars,namely: X Persei, EW Canis Majoris, θ Coronae Borealis, 4 (V839)Herculis, 88 (V744) Herculis, 66 (V2048) Ophiuchi, NW Serpentis, CXDraconis, 12 (V395) Vulpeculae, 28 (V1624) Cygni, QR Vulpeculae, 59(V832) Cygni, EW Lacertae, ο Andromedae, and KX Andromedae. Theobservations were made in 1996-1999 through the Automatic PhotometricTelescope Service in Arizona and through the American Association ofVariable Star Observers (AAVSO) photoelectric photometry program andhave been added to a database extending back 20 years. We describe thestars' recent behavior and also comment on the long-term behavior ofsome of them. They vary photometrically on timescales ranging from abouta day to many years.
| A Search for High-Velocity Be Stars
We present an analysis of the kinematics of Be stars based uponHipparcos proper motions and published radial velocities. We findapproximately 23 of the 344 stars in our sample have peculiar spacemotions greater than 40 km s-1 and up to 102 kms-1. We argue that these high-velocity stars are the resultof either a supernova that disrupted a binary or ejection by closeencounters of binaries in young clusters. Be stars spun up by binarymass transfer will appear as high-velocity objects if there wassignificant mass loss during the supernova explosion of the initiallymore massive star, but the generally moderate peculiar velocities of BeX-ray binaries indicate that the progenitors lose most of their massprior to the supernova (in accordance with model predictions). Binaryformation models for Be stars predict that most systems bypass thesupernova stage (and do not receive runaway velocities) to createultimately Be+white dwarf binaries. The fraction of Be stars spun up bybinary mass transfer remains unknown, since the post-mass transfercompanions are difficult to detect.
| High and intermediate-resolution spectroscopy of Be stars 4481 lines
We present an atlas of Hγ , He i lambda 4471 and Mg ii lambda 4481line profiles obtained in a 10 year observation period of 116 Be stars,which enabled many of them to be observed at quite different emissionepochs. From the best fit of the observed He i lambda 4471 line profileswith non-LTE, uniform (Teff,log g) and full limb-darkenedmodel line profiles, we determined the V sin i of the program stars. Toaccount, to some degree, for the line formation peculiarities related tothe rapid rotation-induced non-uniform distributions of temperature andgravity on the stellar surface, the fit was achieved by considering(Teff,log g) as free parameters. This method produced V sin iestimations that correlate with the rotational velocities determined bySlettebak (1982) within a dispersion sigma <= 30 km s-1and without any systematic deviation. They can be considered as given inthe new Slettebak's et al. (1975) system. Only 13 program stars havediscrepant V sin i values. In some objects, this discrepancy could beattributed to binary effects. Using the newly determined V sin iparameters, we found that the ratio of true rotational velocitiesV/Vc of the program Be stars has a very low dispersion aroundthe mean value. Assuming then that all the stars are rigid rotators withthe same ratio V(/lineω)/Vc, we looked for the value of/line ω that better represents the distribution of V sini/Vc for randomly oriented rotational axes. We obtained/lineω = 0.795. This value enabled us to determine the probableinclination angle of the stellar rotation axis of the program stars. Inthe observed line profiles of Hγ , He i lambda 4471, Mg ii lambda4481 and Fe ii lambda 4351 we measured several parameters related to theabsorption and/or emission components, such as: equivalent width,residual emission and/or absorption intensity, FWHM, emission peakseparations, etc. The parameters related to the Hγ line emissionprofiles were used to investigate the structure of the nearbyenvironment of the central star. From the characteristics of thecorrelations between these quantities and the inferred inclinationangle, we concluded that in most of cases the Hγ line emissionforming regions may not be strongly flattened. Using a simplerepresentation of the radiation flux emitted by the star+envelopesystem, we derived first order estimates of physical parameterscharacterizing the Hγ line emission formation region. Thus, weobtained that the total extent of the Hγ region is Rf=~ 2.5 +/- 1.0 R* and that the density distribution in theselayers can be mimicked with a power law rho ~ R-alpha , wherealpha =2.5+2.2-0.6. The same approach enabled usto estimate the optical depth of the Hγ line emission formationregion. From its dependence with the aspect angle, we concluded thatthese regions are caracterized by a modest flattening and that the rho(equator)/rho (pole) density contrast of the circumstellar envelope nearthe star should be two orders of magnitude lower than predicted bymodels based on a priori disc-shaped circumstellar envelopes. We foundthat the separation between the emission peaks, Deltap, andthe full width at half maximum, Delta 1/2, of the Hγline emission are not only sensitive to kinematic effects, but to lineoptical depth as well. This finding agrees with previous theoreticalpredictions and confirms that Huang's (1972) relation overestimates theextent of the Hγ line emission formation region. Data obtained atCASLEO operated under agreement between the CONICET and the NationalUniversities of La Plata, Córdoba and San Juan, Argentina, at ESOLa Silla, Chile and at OHP, France.}\fnmsep\thanks{Tables 2 to 7 andFigs. 1 and 2 are only available in full in electronic form at CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via\http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/378/861}} \subtitle{Anatlas of Hγ , He {\fontsize {10pt}{12pt}\selectfont I} 4471 and Mg{\fontsize {10pt}{12pt}\selectfont II
| The Be/X-ray transient 4U 0115+63/V635 Cassiopeiae. II. Outburst mechanisms
We present multi-wavelength long-term monitoring observations of V635Cas, the optical counterpart to the transient X-ray pulsar 4U 0115+63.The evolution of emission lines and photometric magnitudes indicatesthat the Be star undergoes relatively fast ( ~ 3-5 \: yr) quasi-cyclicactivity, losing and reforming its circumstellar disc. We show that thegeneral optical, infrared and X-ray behaviour can be explained by thedynamical evolution of the viscous circumstellar disc around the Bestar. After each disc-loss episode, the disc starts reforming and growsuntil it reaches the radius at which the resonant interaction of theneutron star truncates it. At some point, the disc becomes unstable to(presumably radiative) warping and then tilts and starts precessing. Thetilting is very large and disc precession leads to a succession ofsingle-peaked and shell profiles in the emission lines. Type II X-rayoutbursts take place after the disc has been strongly disturbed and wespeculate that the distortion of the disc leads to interaction with theorbiting neutron star. We discuss the implications of these correlatedoptical/X-ray variations for the different models proposed to explainthe occurrence of X-ray outbursts in Be/X-ray binaries. We show that thehypothesis of mass ejection events as the cause of the spectacularvariability and the X-ray outbursts is unlikely to be meaningful for anyBe/X-ray binary.
| Statistical analysis of intrinsic polarization, IR excess and projected rotational velocity distributions of classical Be stars
We present the results of statistical analyses of a sample of 627 Bestars. The parameters of intrinsic polarization (p*),projected rotational velocity (v sin i), and near IR excesses have beeninvestigated. The values of p* have been estimated for a muchlarger and more representative sample of Be stars (~490 objects) thanpreviously. We have confirmed that most Be stars of early spectral typehave statistically larger values of polarization and IR excesses incomparison with the late spectral type stars. It is found that thedistributions of p* diverge considerably for the differentspectral subgroups. In contrast to late spectral types (B5-B9.5), thedistribution of p* for B0-B2 stars does not peak at the valuep*=0%. Statistically significant differences in the meanprojected rotational velocities (/line{vsin i}) are found for differentspectral subgroups of Be stars in the sense that late spectral typestars (V luminosity class) generally rotate faster than early types, inagreement with previously published results. This behaviour is, however,not obvious for the III-IV luminosity class stars. Nevertheless, thecalculated values of the ratio vt/vc of the truerotational velocity, vt, to the critical velocity forbreak-up, vc, is larger for late spectral type stars of allluminosity classes. Thus, late spectral type stars appear to rotatecloser to their break-up rotational velocity. The distribution of nearIR excesses for early spectral subgroups is bi-modal, the position ofthe second peak displaying a maximum value E(V-L)~ 1 . m 3for O-B1.5 stars, decreasing to E(V-L)~0. m8 for intermediatespectral types (B3-B5). It is shown that bi-modality disappears for latespectral types (B6-B9.5). No correlations were found betweenp* and near IR excesses and between E(V-L) and vsin i for thedifferent subgroups of Be stars. In contrast to near IR excesses, arelation between p* and far IR excesses at 12 mu m is clearlyseen. A clear relation between p* and vsin i (as well asbetween p* and /line{vsin i}/vc) is found by thefact that plots of these parameters are bounded by a ``triangular"distribution of p*: vsin i, with a decrease of p*towards very small and very large vsin i (and /line{vsini}/vc) values. The latter behaviour can be understood in thecontext of a larger oblateness of circumstellar disks for the stars witha rapid rotation. From the analysis of correlations between differentobservational parameters we conclude that circumstellar envelopes forthe majority of Be stars are optically thin disks with the range of thehalf-opening angle of 10degr
| The circumstellar structure of the Be shell star φ Persei. II. Modeling
We model Fe Ii 5317 emission lines and phase resolved He I 6678 and 5876emission lines of the bright B2e&sdO shell binary phi Per to findthe size and shape of the excitation region inside the circumprimarydisk. We find the Fe Ii 5317 emission to originate within 9 stellarradii in an axisymmetric disk around the primary. Orbital phasevariations of He I 6678 are fit in terms of a disk sector with diskradius of 10 stellar radii and opening angle of =~ 120degr facing thesecondary. This region can be alternatively described by an intersectionof a sphere around the secondary and the circumprimary disk with apenetration depth of about 7 R_*. Similar fit values are found for He I5876. The enigmatic orbital phase precedence of shell occurrence in theHe I emission features is discussed. We favor a model in which the innerHe I shell is deformed because of differential rotation in combinationwith a finite recombination time. Based on observations collected at theOndřejov Observatory (of the Academy of Sciences of the CzechRepublic), the German-Spanish Astronomical Center (DSAZ) -- Calar Alto(operated by the Max-Plank-Institut für Astronomie Heidelbergjointly with the Spanish National Commission for Astronomy) andObservatoire de Haute-Provence (OHP; CNRS, France).
| Catalogue of Apparent Diameters and Absolute Radii of Stars (CADARS) - Third edition - Comments and statistics
The Catalogue, available at the Centre de Données Stellaires deStrasbourg, consists of 13 573 records concerning the results obtainedfrom different methods for 7778 stars, reported in the literature. Thefollowing data are listed for each star: identifications, apparentmagnitude, spectral type, apparent diameter in arcsec, absolute radiusin solar units, method of determination, reference, remarks. Commentsand statistics obtained from CADARS are given. The Catalogue isavailable in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp tocdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcar?J/A+A/367/521
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Observation and Astrometry data
| Constellation: | Cygne |
| Right ascension: | 20h59m49.60s |
| Declination: | +47°31'16.0" |
| Apparent magnitude: | 4.74 |
| Distance: | 344.828 parsecs |
| Proper motion RA: | 3 |
| Proper motion Dec: | 0 |
| B-T magnitude: | 4.63 |
| V-T magnitude: | 4.735 |
Catalogs and designations:
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INHABITED SKY
