RZ Psc Research Articles

RZ Piscium Hosts a Compact and Highly Perturbed Debris Disk

RZ Piscium (RZ Psc) is well known in the variable star field because of its numerous irregular optical dips in the past 5 decades, but the nature of the system is heavily debated in the literature. We present multiyear infrared monitoring data from Spitzer and WISE to track the activities of the inner debris production, revealing stochastic infrared variability as short as weekly timescales that is consistent with destroying a 90 km sized asteroid every year. ALMA 1.3 mm data combined with spectral energy distribution modeling show that the disk is compact (∼0.1–13 au radially) and lacks cold gas. The disk is found to be highly inclined and has a significant vertical scale height. These observations confirm that RZ Psc hosts a close to edge-on, highly perturbed debris disk possibly due to migration of recently formed giant planets that might be triggered by the low-mass companion RZ Psc B if the planets formed well beyond the snowlines.

Magnetospheric accretion at the late phases of the pre-main-sequence evolution: the case of RZ Psc

ABSTRACT It has been shown that during the burst of accretion activity observed in UX Ori-type star RZ Psc in 2013, the accretion rate increased approximately by an order of magnitude. This means that the accretion process at the late stages of the pre-main sequence evolution is very unstable. Using the spectra obtained during this episode, we have studied the magnetospheric emission in the H α line. Models of magnetospheric accretion are calculated to obtain the parameters of the magnetosphere from this observation. In this work, we have taken into account the influence of the recombination delay effect during gas motion in the stellar magnetosphere. The accounting for this effect and the presence of the magnetospheric absorption in the IR Ca ii triplet lines and its absence in D Na i resonance lines allowed us to place a lower limit on the temperature in the magnetosphere at $\approx 10\, 000$ K, which significantly improved precision of our estimate of accretion rate. According to the best-fitting model, the logarithm of accretion rate is $\log \dot{M} = -10.1\pm 0.3$ ($\dot{M} \approx 7\times 10^{-11}\ \mathrm{M_\odot \, yr^{-1}}$) and the inclination angle of RZ Psc is 43° ± 3°. It is less than the inclination, typical for the UX Ori stars (about 70°), that explains the weak photometric variability of this star. Using the obtained accretion rate and magnetosphere radius, we estimate the strength of the dipole component of the magnetic field of RZ Psc ≈ 0.1 kGs.

The Complex Behaviour of s-Process Element Abundances at Young Ages

Open clusters appear as simple objects in many respects, with a high degree of homogeneity in their (initial) chemical composition, and the typical solar-scaled abundance pattern that they exhibit for the majority of the chemical species. The striking singularity is represented by heavy elements produced from the slow process of the neutron-capture reactions. In particular, young open clusters (ages less than a few hundred Myr) give rise to the so-called barium puzzle: that is an extreme enhancement in their [Be/Fe] ratios, up to a factor of four of the solar value, which is not followed by other nearby s-process elements (e.g., lanthanum and cerium). The definite explanation for such a peculiar trend is still wanting, as many different solutions have been envisaged. We review the status of this field and present our new results on young open clusters and the pre-main sequence star RZ Piscium.

A low-mass stellar companion to the young variable star RZ Psc

ABSTRACT RZ Psc is a young Sun-like star with a bright and warm infrared excess that is occasionally dimmed significantly by circumstellar dust structures. Optical depth arguments suggest that the dimming events do not probe a typical sightline through the circumstellar dust, and are instead caused by structures that appear above an optically thick mid-plane. This system may therefore be similar to systems where an outer disc is shadowed by material closer to the star. Here, we report the discovery that RZ Psc hosts a $0.12\, \mathrm{ M}_\odot$ companion at a projected separation of 23 au. We conclude that the disc must orbit the primary star. While we do not detect orbital motion, comparison of the angle of linear polarization of the primary with the companion’s on-sky position angle provides circumstantial evidence that the companion and disc may not share the same orbital plane. Whether the companion severely disrupts the disc, truncates it, or has little effect at all will require further observations of both the companion and disc.

Flares of accretion activity of the 20 Myr old UXOR RZ Psc

We discuss a revision of accretion activity and kinematics of the enigmatic isolated UX Ori type star RZ Psc. Previously, RZ Psc was known to possess only spectroscopic signatures of outflow in the low-excitation lines of alkali metals. The archival high-resolution spectra reveal a short-lived episode of magnetospheric accretion in the system observed via inverse P Cyg profiles at the Hα and Ca II 8542 Å lines. The simultaneous presence of accretion and outflow signatures at Ca II 8542 Å is suggestive of an accretion-driven origin of the RZ Psc wind. We argue that RZ Psc experiences matter ejection via the magnetic propeller mechanism but variable accretion episodes allow it to sometimes move in the magnetospheric accretion regime. The presence of the weak accretion in the system is also supported by the radiation of the hot accretion spot on the stellar surface observed spectroscopically at the deep photometric minimum of the star. The Galactic motion of RZ Psc calculated with new Gaia DR2 astrometric data suggests possible membership in Cas-Tau OB association with an age of t = 20−5+3 Myr.

Is the Young Star RZ Piscium Consuming Its Own (Planetary) Offspring?

Abstract The erratically variable star RZ Piscium (RZ Psc) displays extreme optical dropout events and strikingly large excess infrared emission. To ascertain the evolutionary status of this intriguing star, we obtained observations of RZ Psc with the European Space Agency’s X-ray Multi-Mirror Mission (XMM-Newton), as well as high-resolution optical spectroscopy with the Hamilton Echelle on the Lick Shane 3 m telescope and with HIRES on the Keck I 10 m telescope. The optical spectroscopy data demonstrate that RZ Psc is a pre-main sequence star with an effective temperature of 5600 ± 75 K and log g of 4.35 ± 0.10. The ratio of X-ray to bolometric luminosity, , lies in the range −3.7 to −3.2, consistent with ratios typical of young, solar-mass stars, thereby providing strong support for the young star status of RZ Psc. The Li absorption line strength of RZ Psc suggests an age in the range 30–50 Myr, which in turn implies that RZ Psc lies at a distance of ∼170 pc. Adopting this estimated distance, we find the Galactic space velocity of RZ Psc to be similar to the space velocities of stars in young moving groups near the Sun. Optical spectral features indicative of activity and/or circumstellar material are present in our spectra over multiple epochs, which provide evidence for the presence of a significant mass of circumstellar gas associated with RZ Psc. We suggest that the destruction of one or more massive orbiting bodies has recently occurred within 1 au of the star, and we are viewing the aftermath of such an event along the plane of the orbiting debris.

D Na I absorption lines formation in the RZ Psc spectrum

Discrete variable absorption components in the RZ Psc spectrum are studied. Two hypothesis of their formation are considered. The effective star radiation scattering computation method is presented. The resonance scattering in both cases is modeled. The model spectra are reviewed and analyzed. The conclusion about the possible reasons of the observed spectra formation is made.

Resonance Line Formation in Moving Gas Flows with High Porosity

The formation of resonance lines in gas flows generated by interactions of circumstellar gas with a star’s magnetosphere is examined. An effective method is proposed for calculating these lines when the magnetospheric wind is highly porous. The resonance sodium lines observed in the spectrum of UX Ori type star RZ Psc are modelled as an example. It is shown that the narrow absorptions observed in the short wavelength wings of these lines can be formed by scattering of the star’s radiation in two gas jets that are semitransparent at the line frequencies when they cross the line of sight.

Accretion and outflow activity on the late phases of pre-main-sequence evolution

RZ Psc is an isolated high-latitude post-T Tauri star that demonstrates a UX Ori-type photometric activity. The star shows very weak spectroscopic signatures of accretion, but at the same time possesses the unusual footprints of the wind in Na I D lines. In the present work we investigate new spectroscopic observations of RZ Psc obtained in 2014 during two observation runs. We found variable blueshifted absorption components (BACs) in lines of the other alcali metals, K I 7699 \AA\ and Ca II IR triplet. We also confirmed the presence of a weak emission component in the H$\alpha$ line, which allowed us to estimate the mass accretion rate on the star as $\dot{M}\leq$ $7 \cdot 10^{-12}$Msun yr$^{-1}$. We could not reveal any clear periodicity in the appearance of BACs in sodium lines. Nevertheless, the exact coincidence of the structure and velocities of the Na I D absorptions observed with the interval of about one year suggests that such a periodicity should exist.

The transiting dust clumps in the evolved disc of the Sun-like UXor RZ Psc.

RZ Psc is a young Sun-like star, long associated with the UXor class of variable stars, which is partially or wholly dimmed by dust clumps several times each year. The system has a bright and variable infrared excess, which has been interpreted as evidence that the dimming events are the passage of asteroidal fragments in front of the host star. Here, we present a decade of optical photometry of RZ Psc and take a critical look at the asteroid belt interpretation. We show that the distribution of light curve gradients is non-uniform for deep events, which we interpret as possible evidence for an asteroidal fragment-like clump structure. However, the clumps are very likely seen above a high optical depth midplane, so the disc’s bulk clumpiness is not revealed. While circumstantial evidence suggests an asteroid belt is more plausible than a gas-rich transition disc, the evolutionary status remains uncertain. We suggest that the rarity of Sun-like stars showing disc-related variability may arise because (i) any accretion streams are transparent and/or (ii) turbulence above the inner rim is normally shadowed by a flared outer disc.

Magnetic propeller effect in the spectra of young stars

The origin of the blueshifted narrow absorption components in the resonance sodium doublet lines observed in the spectra of some young stars is discussed. Such components are assumed to be formed by the interaction of the circumstellar gas with the stellar magnetosphere in the magnetic propeller regime. The results of observations for the post UX Ori star RZ Psc are discussed in detail. This star shows distinctive signatures of mass outflow in the absence of any clear accretion signatures. Such a picture is quite possible in the magnetic propeller regime. Estimates show that for this regime to be realized, the star must have a surface magnetic field of ~1 kG at an accretion rate that does not exceed 10-10M. yr-1.

Low-mass protoplanetary disk of the herbig Ae star DDser: Thermal radiation of dust and possible presence of massive planets

We detected thermal IR radiation from DDSer, a low-activity UXOri-type star, the source of which is a disk with a complex structure (an inner ring with the dust temperature of about 900 K and an outer disk with the temperature below 300 K). The 15.1-year period, which we estimated from our longterm photometric observations, indicates the perturbation of this ring by a low-mass companion (a planet perhaps) with an orbital radius of 8 a.u. In general, the detected characteristics of the DDSer disk (a dust ring with the densitymodulated with a 10-year scale period, the presence of compact dust clumps inside the ring’s inner lobe) are almost identical to the characteristics of the RZ Psc disk, where an active asteroid belt inside the orbit of a planet or a similar low-mass companion is assumed. Although the suggestion about a collisional source of the dust in these systems is disputable, the complex structure of their disks,manifested in the IR spectrum shape and photometric variability, especially the long-period variability, gives evidence for massive planets already formed in these systems.

Radial Velocity Fluctuations of RZ Psc

The behavior of the radial velocity of the UX Ori type star RZ Psc is studied. The existence of an inner cavity with a radius of about 0.7 a.u. in the circumstellar disk of this star allows to suggest the presence of a companion. A study of the radial velocity of RZ Psc based on our own measurements and published data yields no periodic component in its variability. The two most accurate measurements of V r , based on high resolution spectra obtained over a period of three months, show that the radial velocity is constant over this time interval to within 0.5 km/s. This imposes a limit of M p ≤10 M Jup on the mass of the hypothetical companion. Possible reasons for the observed strong fluctuations in the radial velocity of this star are discussed.

An in-depth analysis of the RZ Piscium atmosphere

The star RZ Psc is one of the most unusual members of the UX Ori star family. It demonstrates all properties that are typical of these stars (the light variability, high linear polarization in deep minima, the blueing effect), but until recently there has been no obvious evidence of its youth. Recently, we have shown that RZ Psc is in the transitional evolutionary stage between stars with the primordial and debris disks. In this paper we present the results of the quantitative analysis of the star’s spectrum. Using the high-resolution (R = 46 000) spectrum of RZ Psc obtained with Nordic Optical Telescope, we determined T eff = 5350 ± 150 K, log g = 4.2 ± 0.2, [M/H] = −0.3 ± 0.05. These parameters agree well with the same ones as for the stars recently passed the T Tauri star evolutionary stage. This supports our previous suggestion about the evolutionary status of RZ Psc as the post-T Tauri and post-UX Ori star.

Observation of Circumstellar Gas in the Neighborhood of RZ Psc

The first evidence is found of the existence of circumstellar gas in the nearest surroundings of the UX Ori star RZ Psc. Spectra obtained at the Terskol Observatory, Special Astrophysical Observatory (SAO), and the Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT) reveal a strong variability in the sodium doublet lines that is indicative of a sporadic outflow of matter. Weak variability was also observed in the core of the Hα line. One nontrivial feature of this discovery is that RZ Psc is of spectral class K0 IV. This means that the star has no intrinsic energy resources for creating the observed outflow of matter. There are no emission lines in the star’s spectrum which might indicate that matter is falling into the star so that the observed outflow could be related to an accretion process. We suggest, nevertheless, that the ejection of gas is related to residual (slow) accretion and is driven by a propeller mechanism. The latter is possible if the star has a sufficiently high (on the order of 103 G) magnetic field.

On the kinematic age of RZ Psc

RZ Psc belongs to the family of young UX Ori stars whose photometric activity is due to strong extinction variations in the circumstellar disks surrounding them. However, in contrast to all the remaining stars of this type, no evidence of youth has been detected for RZ Psc until recently. A rough estimate of the star’s kinematic age was made for the first time in our previous paper (Grinin et al. 2010). It shows that RZ Psc is intermediate in its evolutionary status between young stars in Orion and stars with debris disks. In this paper, we provide a refined estimate of the kinematic age for the star confirming this conclusion. According to this estimate, the age of RZ Psc is approximately 25 ± 5 Myr at M* = 1M⊙.

Active asteroid belt causes the UXOR phenomenon in RZ Piscium

We report the discovery of mid-infrared excess emission in the young object RZ Psc. The excess constitutes ~8% of its Lbol, and is well fit by a single 500K black-body implying a dust free region within 0.7AU for optically thick dust. The object displays dust obscuration events (UXOR behaviour) with a time-scale that suggests dusty material on orbits of 0.5AU. We also report a 12.4 year cyclical photometric variability which can be interpreted as due to perturbations in the dust distribution. The system is characterized by a high inclination, marginal extinction (during bright photometric states), a single temperature for the warm dust, and an age estimate which puts the star beyond the formation stage. We propose that the dust occultation events present a dynamical view of an active asteroid belt whose collisional products sporadically obscure the central star.

The evolutionary status of the UX Orionis star RZ Piscium

The star RZ Psc is one of the most enigmatic members of the UX Ori star family. It shows all properties that are typical for these stars (the light variability, high linear polarization in deep minima, the blueing effect) except for one: it lacks any signatures of youth. With the Li I line, as a rough estimate for the stellar age, we show that the "lithium" age of RZ Psc lies between the age of stars in the Pleiades (approximately 70 Myr) and the Orion (approximately 10 Myr) clusters. We also roughly estimated the age of RZ Psc based on the proper motion of the star using the Tycho-2 catalog. We found that the star has escaped from its assumed birthplace near to the Galactic plane about 30-40 Myr ago. We conclude that RZ Psc is a post-UXOr star, and its sporadic eclipses are caused by material from the debris disk.

Photometric and polarimetric activity of RZ Psc

We present the results of synchronous photometric and polarimetric U BV RI observations of the irregular variable star RZ Psc, acquired at the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory in 1989–2002. The star’s photometric behavior is characterized by short, sporadic Algol-like dimmings. We observed only one deep minimum, with a V amplitude of about 1.5m, during the entire observation time. During this minimum, the star’s linear polarization reached 3.5%. Comparisons with polarization observations of RZ Psc during another deep minimum in 1989 show that the two minima can be described by the same polarization-brightness relation, testifying to an eclipsing nature for the minima. This provides evidence that the optical characteristics of the flattened circumstellar dust envelope that gives rise to the star’s intrinsic polarization have remained virtually unchanged over the last 13 years. We argue that the origin of this stability is the presence of a large dust-free cavity in the central region of the circumstellar dust disk of RZ Psc. The cavity could be associated with binarity of the star or the formation of a planetary system, with most of the dust in the central region of the disk being transformed into large bodies—planetesimals and planets.

Spectral features of RZ Psc, a cool star with Algol-like brightness minima

We have determined the physical (Teff, logg, ζ) and kinematic (Vesini,Vr) parameters and abundances for 14 chemical elements in the atmosphere of the “antiflare” variable RZ Psc, using medium-resolution spectra obtained with the Coude spectrographs of the 6-m telescope of the Special Astrophysical Observatory and the Crimean Astrophysical Observatory 2.6-m Shain telescope. The chemical composition of the star is characterized by a slight metal deficiency; however, the iron and calcium abundances are consistent with the solar values within the errors. We also detected a peculiar dip (depression) of the continuum level near the Hα line. Assuming that this depression and the photospheric Hα line have independent origins, we calculated the hydrogen abundance X in the atmosphere of RZ Psc. The resulting value X=0.70 (of the solar value) implies a relative deficiency of hydrogen. Together with the spatial location of the star, these properties provide evidence that RZ Psc is an evolved star, most likely belonging to population II.