TY  - JOUR
A1  - Huenemoerder, David P.
A1  - Gayley, K. G.
A1  - Hamann, Wolf-Rainer
A1  - Ignace, R.
A1  - Nichols, J. S.
A1  - Oskinova, Lida
A1  - Pollock, A. M. T.
A1  - Schulz, Norbert S.
A1  - Shenar, Tomer
T1  - Probing Wolf-Rayet winds: Chandra/HETG X-ray spectra of WR 6
JF  - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics
N2  - With a deep Chandra/HETGS exposure of WR 6, we have resolved emission lines whose profiles show that the X-rays originate from a uniformly expanding spherical wind of high X-ray-continuum optical depth. The presence of strong helium-like forbidden lines places the source of X-ray emission at tens to hundreds of stellar radii from the photosphere. Variability was present in X-rays and simultaneous optical photometry, but neither were correlated with the known period of the system or with each other. An enhanced abundance of sodium revealed nuclear-processed material, a quantity related to the evolutionary state of the star. The characterization of the extent and nature of the hot plasma in WR 6 will help to pave the way to a more fundamental theoretical understanding of the winds and evolution of massive stars.
KW  - stars: individual (WR 6)
KW  - stars: massive
KW  - stars: Wolf-Rayet
Y1  - 2015
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/815/1/29
SN  - 0004-637X
SN  - 1538-4357
VL  - 815
IS  - 1
PB  - IOP Publ. Ltd.
CY  - Bristol
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Oskinova, Lida
A1  - Gayley, K. G.
A1  - Hamann, Wolf-Rainer
A1  - Huenemoerder, D. P.
A1  - Ignace, R.
A1  - Pollock, A. M. T.
T1  - HIGH-RESOLUTION X-RAY SPECTROSCOPY REVEALS THE SPECIAL NATURE OF
 WOLF-RAYET STAR WINDS
JF  - ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL LETTERS
N2  - We present the first high-resolutionX-ray spectrum of a putatively singleWolf-Rayet (WR) star. 400 ks observations of WR 6 by the XMM-Newton telescope resulted in a superb quality high-resolution X-ray spectrum. Spectral analysis reveals that the X-rays originate far out in the stellar wind, more than 30 stellar radii from the photosphere, and thus outside the wind acceleration zone where the line-driving instability (LDI) could create shocks. The X-ray emitting plasma reaches temperatures up to 50 MK and is embedded within the unshocked, "cool" stellar wind as revealed by characteristic spectral signatures. We detect a fluorescent Fe line at approximate to 6.4 keV. The presence of fluorescence is consistent with a two-component medium, where the cool wind is permeated with the hot X-ray emitting plasma. The wind must have a very porous structure to allow the observed amount of X-rays to escape. We find that neither the LDI nor any alternative binary scenario can explain the data. We suggest a scenario where X-rays are produced when the fast wind rams into slow "sticky clumps" that resist acceleration. Our new data show that the X-rays in single WR star are generated by some special mechanism different from the one operating in the O-star winds.
KW  - stars: individual (WR 6)
KW  - stars: winds, outflows
KW  - stars: Wolf-Rayet
KW  - X-rays: stars
Y1  - 2012
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/747/2/L25
SN  - 2041-8205
VL  - 747
IS  - 2
PB  - IOP PUBLISHING LTD
CY  - BRISTOL
ER  - 
TY  - JOUR
A1  - Ignace, Rico
A1  - Gayley, Kenneth G.
A1  - Hamann, Wolf-Rainer
A1  - Huenemoerder, David P.
A1  - Oskinova, Lida
A1  - Pollock, Andy M. T.
A1  - McFall, Michael
T1  - THE XMM-NEWTON/EPIC X-RAY LIGHT CURVE ANALYSIS OF WR 6
JF  - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics
N2  - We obtained four pointings of over 100 ks each of the well-studied Wolf-Rayet star WR 6 with the XMM-Newton satellite. With a first paper emphasizing the results of spectral analysis, this follow-up highlights the X-ray variability clearly detected in all four pointings. However, phased light curves fail to confirm obvious cyclic behavior on the well-established 3.766 day period widely found at longer wavelengths. The data are of such quality that we were able to conduct a search for event clustering in the arrival times of X-ray photons. However, we fail to detect any such clustering. One possibility is that X-rays are generated in a stationary shock structure. In this context we favor a corotating interaction region (CIR) and present a phenomenological model for X-rays from a CIR structure. We show that a CIR has the potential to account simultaneously for the X-ray variability and constraints provided by the spectral analysis. Ultimately, the viability of the CIR model will require both intermittent long-term X-ray monitoring of WR 6 and better physical models of CIR X-ray production at large radii in stellar winds.
KW  - stars: individual (WR 6)
KW  - stars: winds, outflows
KW  - stars: Wolf-Rayet
KW  - X-rays: stars
Y1  - 2013
U6  - https://doi.org/10.1088/0004-637X/775/1/29
SN  - 0004-637X
VL  - 775
IS  - 1
PB  - IOP Publ. Ltd.
CY  - Bristol
ER  -