BO Mic Research Articles

NEW DEBRIS DISKS AROUND YOUNG, LOW-MASS STARS DISCOVERED WITH THESPITZER SPACE TELESCOPE

(abridged) We present 24 and 70 micron MIPS observations of 70 A through M-type dwarfs with estimated ages from 8 Myr to 1.1 Gyr, as part of a Spitzer guaranteed time program. Our sample is selected from stars with common youth indicators such as lithium abundance, X-ray activity, chromospheric activity, and rapid rotation. We compare our MIPS observations to empirically derived K-[24] colors as a function of the stellar effective temperature to identify 24 and 70 micron excesses. We confirm the previously published 70 micron excesses for HD 92945, HD 112429, and AU Mic. We present the discovery of 70 micron excesses for five stars: HD 7590, HD 10008, HD 59967, HD 73350, and HD 135599. We also present the detection of 24 micron excesses for ten stars: HD 10008, GJ 3400A, HD 73350, HD 112429, HD 123998, HD 175742, AT Mic, BO Mic, HD 358623 and Gl 907.1. We find that large 70 micron excesses are less common around stars with effective temperatures of less than 5000 K (3.7%) than around stars with effective temperatures between 5000 K and 6000 K (21.4%), despite the cooler stars having a younger median age in our sample (12 vs.340 Myr). We find that the previously reported excess for TWA 13A at 70 microns is due to a nearby background galaxy. In the Appendix, we present an updated analysis of dust grain removal time-scales due to grain-grain collisions and radiation pressure, Poynting-Robertson drag, stellar wind drag and planet-dust dynamical interaction.

The coronal structure of Speedy Mic – II. Prominence masses and off-disc emission*

Observations of stellar prominences on young rapidly rotating stars provide unique probes of their magnetic fields out to many stellar radii. We compare two independently obtained data sets of the K3 dwarf Speedy Mic (BO Mic, HD 197890) using the Anglo-Australian Telescope (AAT) and the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Very Large Telescope (VLT). Taken more than a fortnight apart, they provide the first insight into the evolution of the prominence system on such a young rapidly rotating star. The largest prominences observed transiting the stellar disc are found at very similar rotational phases between the epochs. This suggests that the magnetic structures supporting the prominences retain their identity on a two to three week time-scale. By taking advantage of the high signal-to-noise ratio and large wavelength range of the VLT observations, we identify prominences as transient absorption features in all lines of the hydrogen Balmer series down to H10. We use the ratios of the prominence equivalent widths (EWs) in these lines to determine their column densities in the first excited state of hydrogen. We determine the optical depths, finding prominences to be rather optically thick (τ≈ 20) in the Hα line. The total hydrogen column density and thus the prominence masses are determined via observations of the Ca II H&K lines. We find typical masses for four of the largest prominences to be in the range 0.5–2.3 × 1014 kg, slightly larger than giant solar prominence masses. Rotationally modulated emission is seen outside of the Hα line. These loops of emission are shown to be caused by prominences seen off the stellar disc. We find that all of the large emission loops can be associated with prominences we see transiting the stellar disc. This, combined with the fact that many prominences appear to eclipse the off-disc emission of others, strongly suggests that the prominence system is highly flattened and likely confined to low stellar latitudes.

The coronal structure of Speedy Mic -- I. A densely packed prominence system beyond corotation

We present new observations of the prominence system on the K3 dwarf Speedy Mic (BO Mic, HD 197890). Using an improved technique to track the absorption features in Hα we find a very active prominence system with approximately 10 prominences on the observable hemisphere per rotation. From a total of 25 prominences, we find an average axial distance of (2.85 ± 0.54) R* which is twice the corotation radius above the stellar surface. We discuss the consequences of these observations on the nature of the supporting magnetic structures. Two consecutive nights, with complete phase coverage, combined with a further night after a three-night gap allow us to study the evolution of the prominence system on two different time-scales. Several of the prominences have counterparts at similar phases on consecutive nights. During this interval, many prominences show evidence for evolution in their heights and phases of observation. Five nights (13 rotation cycles) later, we recover many prominences at approximately the same phases. Whilst individual prominences change axial distances or appear/reappear from night-to-night, the underlying prominence supporting structures appear to be stable over as many as 13 stellar rotations.

The highly spotted photosphere of the young rapid rotator Speedy Mic

We present high-resolution images of the young rapidly rotating K3 dwarf Speedy Mic (BO Mic, HD 197890). The photospheric spot maps reveal a heavily and uniformly spotted surface from equatorial to high-latitude regions. Contrary to many images of similar objects, Speedy Mic does not possess a uniform filling at high latitudes, but exhibits structure in the polar regions showing greatest concentration in a particular longitude range. The asymmetric rotation profile of Speedy Mic indicates the presence of a companion or nearby star which shows radial velocity shifts over a time-scale of several years. Using a simple dynamical argument, we show that Speedy Mic is unlikely to be a binary system, and conclude that the feature must be the result of a chance alignment with a background binary. Complete phase coverage on two consecutive nights in addition to 60 per cent phase coverage after a three-night gap has enabled us to track the evolution of spots with time. By incorporating a solar-like differential rotation model into the image reconstruction process, we find that the equator laps the polar regions once every 191 ± 17 d. This finding is in close agreement with measurements for other late-type rapid rotators. Ke yw ords: line: profiles ‐ methods: data analysis ‐ stars: activity ‐ stars: atmospheres ‐ stars: individual: Speedy Mic (HD 197890) ‐ stars: late-type.

Localizing plages on BO Mic

We have obtained a densely sampled time series of Ca  H&K line profiles of the ultrafast rotating K-dwarf star BO Mic. Taken at high resolution, the spectra reveal pronounced variations of the emission core profiles. We interpret these variations as signs of concentrated chromospherically active regions, in analogy to solar plages. We further interpret the varia- tions as partly due to the rapid growth and decay of plages, while other variations appear to be caused by plages moved over the visible stellar disk by rotation. The equivalent width of the Ca K core emission changes approximately in anti-phase to the photospheric brightness, suggesting an association of the chromospheric plage regions with pronounced dark photospheric spots. We believe that further analysis of the presented spectral time series will lead to a chromospheric Doppler image of BO mic.

Doppler imaging of Speedy Mic using the VLT

We study the short-term evolution of starspots on the ultrafast-rotating star HD 197890 (“Speedy Mic” = BO Mic, K 0-2 V, d) based on two Doppler images taken about 13 stellar rotations apart. Each image is based on spectra densely sampling a single stellar rotation. The images were reconstructed by our Doppler imaging code CLDI (Clean-like Doppler imaging) from line profiles extracted by spectrum deconvolution. Our Doppler images constructed from two independent wavelength ranges agree well on scales down to 10° on the stellar surface. In conjunction with nearly parallel V-band photometry our observations reveal a significant evolution of the spot pattern during as little as two stellar rotations. We suggest that such a fast spot evolution demands care when constructing Doppler images of highly active stars based on spectral time series extending over several stellar rotations. The fast intrinsic spot evolution on BO Mic impedes the determination of a surface differential rotation; in agreement with earlier results by other authors we determine an upper limit of .

The 100 Brightest X-Ray Stars within 50 Parsecs of the Sun

Based on the Hipparcos and Tycho-2 astrometric catalogs and the ROSAT surveys, a sample of 100 stars most luminous in X-rays within or around a distance of 50 pc is culled. The smallest X-ray luminosity in the sample, in units of 1029 ergs s-1, is LX = 9.8; the strongest source in the solar neighborhood is II Peg, a RS CVn star, at LX = 175.8. With respect to the origin of X-ray emission, the sample is divided into partly overlapping classes of pre–main-sequence, post–T Tauri, and very young ZAMS objects (type XY), RS CVn–type binary stars (type RS), other active short-period binaries, including binary BY Dra–type objects (type XO), apparently single or long-period binary active evolved stars (type XG), contact binaries of WU UMa kind (type WU), apparently single or long-period binary variable stars of BY Dra kind (type BY), and objects of unknown nature (type X?). Chromospherically active, short-period binaries (RS and XO) make up 40% of the brightest X-ray emitters, followed by young stars (XY) at 30% and unknown sources (X?) at 15%. The fraction of spectroscopically single evolved X-ray emitters of spectral classes IV and III is quite large (10%). The sources identified as RS CVn–type stars (RS, 23 objects) are considerably stronger in X-ray than the XY-objects and the other active binaries (XO and WU, 20 objects). Seven objects have LX > 100, all RS except one XY, viz., BO Mic. Only five (22%) RS objects have LX 25. Formally, the limit of LX = 25 could serve as a statistical criterion to differentiate RS and XY stars. However, the other short-period binaries (including eclipsing stars of Algol and β Lyr type) have a distribution of LX very similar to the XY objects. The contact binaries (WU) appear to be much weaker in X-rays than their detached counterparts of RS type, but the sample of the former is too small (three objects) to reach a firm conclusion. Sources matched with giants (either single or in binaries) are found to be significantly harder, with only 7% of hardness ratios below 0, than subgiants (66% of HR1 < 0) and dwarfs (59% of HR1 < 0). Almost all objects in the sample are binary or multiple stars; the fraction of components (FC), defined as the total number of components in all binary and multiple systems divided by the sum of the total number of components and single stars, is at least 0.90. The FC for the XY objects reaches 0.81, and for the unknown type 0.89. About 70% of RS objects have also visual or astrometric companions, which makes them hierarchical multiple systems. The RS objects (mostly old, evolved stars) and the XY stars have quite different kinematics. While the RS objects move at considerable velocities in apparently random directions with respect to the local standard of rest, the young stars have smaller and orderly velocities and tend to comprise expanding mini-associations such as the β Pic and the Tucana groups. The majority of the young X-ray active stars belong to the Pleiades stream with the mean heliocentric velocity (U, V, W) = (-9.6, -21.8, -7.7) km s-1.