TY - JOUR A1 - Hainich, Rainer A1 - Ruehling, Ute A1 - Todt, Helge Tobias A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Liermann, A. A1 - Graefener, G. A1 - Foellmi, C. A1 - Schnurr, O. A1 - Hamann, Wolf-Rainer T1 - The Wolf-Rayet stars in the Large Magellanic Cloud - A comprehensive analysis of the WN class JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - Context. Massive stars, although being important building blocks of galaxies, are still not fully understood. This especially holds true for Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars with their strong mass loss, whose spectral analysis requires adequate model atmospheres. Aims. Following our comprehensive studies of the WR stars in the Milky Way, we now present spectroscopic analyses of almost all known WN stars in the LMC. Methods. For the quantitative analysis of the wind-dominated emission-line spectra, we employ the Potsdam Wolf-Rayet (PoWR) model atmosphere code. By fitting synthetic spectra to the observed spectral energy distribution and the available spectra (ultraviolet and optical), we obtain the physical properties of 107 stars. Results. We present the fundamental stellar and wind parameters for an almost complete sample of WN stars in the LMC. Among those stars that are putatively single, two different groups can be clearly distinguished. While 12% of our sample are more luminous than 10(6) L-circle dot and contain a significant amount of hydrogen, 88% of the WN stars, with little or no hydrogen, populate the luminosity range between log (L/L-circle dot) = 5.3 ... 5.8. Conclusions. While the few extremely luminous stars (log (L/L-circle dot) > 6), if indeed single stars, descended directly from the main sequence at very high initial masses, the bulk of WN stars have gone through the red-supergiant phase. According to their luminosities in the range of log (L/L-circle dot) = 5.3 ... 5.8, these stars originate from initial masses between 20 and 40 M-circle dot. This mass range is similar to the one found in the Galaxy, i.e. the expected metallicity dependence of the evolution is not seen. Current stellar evolution tracks, even when accounting for rotationally induced mixing, still partly fail to reproduce the observed ranges of luminosities and initial masses. Moreover, stellar radii are generally larger and effective temperatures correspondingly lower than predicted from stellar evolution models, probably due to subphotospheric inflation. KW - stars: Wolf-Rayet KW - Magellanic Clouds KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: atmospheres KW - stars: winds, outflows KW - stars: mass-loss Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201322696 SN - 0004-6361 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 565 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hubrig, Swetlana A1 - Fossati, Luca A1 - Carroll, Thorsten Anthony A1 - Castro, Norberto A1 - Gonzalez, J. F. A1 - Ilyin, Ilya A1 - Przybilla, Norbert A1 - Schoeller, M. A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Morel, T. A1 - Langer, N. A1 - Scholz, Ralf-Dieter A1 - Kharchenko, N. V. A1 - Nieva, M. -F. T1 - B fields in OB stars (BOB): The discovery of a magnetic field in a multiple system in the Trifid nebula, one of the youngest star forming regions JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - Aims. Recent magnetic field surveys in O- and B-type stars revealed that about 10% of the core-hydrogen-burning massive stars host large-scale magnetic fields. The physical origin of these fields is highly debated. To identify and model the physical processes responsible for the generation of magnetic fields in massive stars, it is important to establish whether magnetic massive stars are found in very young star-forming regions or whether they are formed in close interacting binary systems. Methods. In the framework of our ESO Large Program, we carried out low-resolution spectropolarimetric observations with FORS 2 in 2013 April of the three most massive central stars in the Trifid nebula, HD 164492A, HD 164492C, and HD 164492D. These observations indicated a strong longitudinal magnetic field of about 500-600 G in the poorly studied component HD 164492C. To confirm this detection, we used HARPS in spectropolarimetric mode on two consecutive nights in 2013 June. Results. Our HARPS observations confirmed the longitudinal magnetic field in HD 164492C. Furthermore, the HARPS observations revealed that HD 164492C cannot be considered as a single star as it possesses one or two companions. The spectral appearance indicates that the primary is most likely of spectral type B1-B1.5 V. Since in both observing nights most spectral lines appear blended, it is currently unclear which components are magnetic. Long-term monitoring using high-resolution spectropolarimetry is necessary to separate the contribution of each component to the magnetic signal. Given the location of the system HD 164492C in one of the youngest star formation regions, this system can be considered as a Rosetta Stone for our understanding of the origin of magnetic fields in massive stars. KW - binaries: close KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: fundamental parameters KW - stars: magnetic field KW - stars: variables: general KW - stars: individual: HD 164492C Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201423490 SN - 0004-6361 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 564 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hubrig, Swetlana A1 - Kholtygin, A. A1 - Ilyin, Ilya A1 - Schöller, M. A1 - Oskinova, Lida T1 - THE FIRST SPECTROPOLARIMETRIC MONITORING OF THE PECULIAR O4 Ief SUPERGIANT zeta PUPPIS JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - The origin of the magnetic field in massive O-type stars is still under debate. To model the physical processes responsible for the generation of O star magnetic fields, it is important to understand whether correlations between the presence of a magnetic field and stellar evolutionary state, rotation velocity, kinematical status, and surface composition can be identified. The O4 Ief supergiant zeta Pup is a fast rotator and a runaway star, which may be a product of a past binary interaction, possibly having had an encounter with the cluster Trumper 10 some 2 Myr ago. The currently available observational material suggests that certain observed phenomena in this star may be related to the presence of a magnetic field. We acquired spectropolarimetric observations of zeta Pup with FORS 2 mounted on the 8 m Antu telescope of the Very Large Telescope to investigate if a magnetic field is indeed present in this star. We show that many spectral lines are highly variable and probably vary with the recently detected period of 1.78 day. No magnetic field is detected in zeta Pup, as no magnetic field measurement has a significance level higher than 2.4 sigma. Still, we studied the probability of a single sinusoidal explaining the variation of the longitudinal magnetic field measurements. KW - stars: atmospheres KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: individual (zetaPup) KW - stars: magnetic field KW - stars: variables: general Y1 - 2016 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3847/0004-637X/822/2/104 SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 822 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hubrig, Swetlana A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Schoeller, M. T1 - First detection of a magnetic field in the fast rotating runaway Oe star zeta Ophiuchi JF - Astronomische Nachrichten = Astronomical notes N2 - The star zeta Ophiuchi is one of the brightest massive stars in the northern hemisphere and was intensively studied in various wavelength domains. The currently available observational material suggests that certain observed phenomena are related to the presence of a magnetic field. We acquired spectropolarimetric observations of zeta Oph with FORS 1 mounted on the 8-m Kueyen telescope of the VLT to investigate if a magnetic field is indeed present in this star. Using all available absorption lines, we detect a mean longitudinal magnetic field < B(z)>(all) = 141 +/- 45 G, confirming the magnetic nature of this star. We review the X-ray properties of zeta Oph with the aim to understand whether the X-ray emission of zeta Oph is dominated by magnetic or by wind instability processes. KW - stars: mass-loss KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: magnetic field KW - stars: kinematics and dynamics KW - X-rays: stars KW - stars: individual: zeta Ophiuchi Y1 - 2011 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1002/asna.201111516 SN - 0004-6337 VL - 332 IS - 2 SP - 147 EP - 152 PB - Wiley-Blackwell CY - Malden ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hubrig, Swetlana A1 - Schoeller, M. A1 - Ilyin, Ilya A1 - Kharchenko, N. V. A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Langer, N. A1 - Gonzalez, J. F. A1 - Kholtygin, A. F. A1 - Briquet, Maryline T1 - Exploring the origin of magnetic fields in massive stars - II. New magnetic field measurements in cluster and field stars JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - Context. Theories on the origin of magnetic fields in massive stars remain poorly developed, because the properties of their magnetic field as function of stellar parameters could not yet be investigated. Additional observations are of utmost importance to constrain the conditions that are conducive to magnetic fields and to determine first trends about their occurrence rate and field strength distribution. Aims. To investigate whether magnetic fields in massive stars are ubiquitous or appear only in stars with a specific spectral classification, certain ages, or in a special environment, we acquired 67 new spectropolarimetric observations for 30 massive stars. Among the observed sample, roughly one third of the stars are probable members of clusters at different ages, whereas the remaining stars are field stars not known to belong to any cluster or association. Methods. Spectropolarimetric observations were obtained during four different nights using the low-resolution spectropolarimetric mode of FOcal Reducer low dispersion Spectrograph (FORS 2) mounted on the 8-m Antu telescope of the VLT. Furthermore, we present a number of follow-up observations carried out with the high-resolution spectropolarimeters SOFIN mounted at the Nordic Optical Telescope (NOT) and HARPS mounted at the ESO 3.6 m between 2008 and 2011. To assess the membership in open clusters and associations, we used astrometric catalogues with the highest quality kinematic and photometric data currently available. Results. The presence of a magnetic field is confirmed in nine stars previously observed with FORS 1/2: HD36879, HD47839, CPD-28 2561, CPD-47 2963, HD93843, HD148937, HD149757, HD328856, and HD164794. New magnetic field detections at a significance level of at least 3 sigma were achieved in five stars: HD92206c, HD93521, HD93632, CPD-46 8221, and HD157857. Among the stars with a detected magnetic field, five stars belong to open clusters with high membership probability. According to previous kinematic studies, five magnetic O-type stars in our sample are candidate runaway stars. KW - polarization KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: kinematics and dynamics KW - stars: magnetic field KW - stars: massive KW - open clusters and associations: general Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201220721 SN - 0004-6361 VL - 551 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hubrig, Swetlana A1 - Schoeller, Markus A1 - Fossati, Luca A1 - Morel, Thierry A1 - Castro, Neves A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Przybilla, Norbert A1 - Eikenberry, Stephen S. A1 - Nieva, Maria Fernanda A1 - Langer, Norbert T1 - B fields in OB stars (BOB): FORS2 spectropolarimetric follow-up of the two rare rigidly rotating magnetosphere stars HD 23478 and HD 345439 JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - Aims. Massive B-type stars with strong magnetic fields and fast rotation are very rare and pose a mystery for theories of star formation and magnetic field evolution. Only two such stars, called sigma Ori E analogues, were known until recently. A team involved in APOGEE, one of the Sloan Digital Sky Survey III programs, announced the discovery of two additional rigidly rotating magnetosphere stars, HD 23478 and HD 345439. The magnetic fields in these newly discovered sOri E analogues have not been investigated so far. Methods. In the framework of our ESO Large Programme and one normal ESO programme, we carried out low-resolution FORS 2 spectropolarimetric observations of HD 23478 and HD 345439. Results. In the measurements of hydrogen lines, we discover a rather strong longitudinal magnetic field of up to 1.5 kG in HD 23478 and up to 1.3 kG using the entire spectrum. The analysis of HD 345439 using four subsequent spectropolarimetric subexposures does not reveal a magnetic field at a significance level of 3 sigma. On the other hand, individual subexposures indicate that HD 345439 may host a strong magnetic field that rapidly varies over 88 min. The fast rotation of HD 345439 is also indicated by the behaviour of several metallic and He I lines in the low-resolution FORS 2 spectra that show profile variations already on this short time-scale. KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: fundamental parameters KW - stars: variables: general KW - stars: magnetic field KW - stars: individual: HD 23478 KW - stars: individual: HD 345439 Y1 - 2015 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201526262 SN - 0004-6361 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 578 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Hünemörder, David P. A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Ignace, Richard A1 - Waldron, Wayne L. A1 - Todt, Helge Tobias A1 - Hamaguchi, Kenji A1 - Kitamoto, Shunji T1 - On the weak-wind problem in massive stars X-ray spectra reveal a massive hot wind in mu columbaea JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics ; Part 2, Letters N2 - mu Columbae is a prototypical weak-wind O star for which we have obtained a high-resolution X-ray spectrum with the Chandra LETG/ACIS instrument and a low-resolution spectrum with Suzaku. This allows us, for the first time, to investigate the role of X-rays on the wind structure in a bona fide weak-wind system and to determine whether there actually is a massive hot wind. The X-ray emission measure indicates that the outflow is an order of magnitude greater than that derived from UV lines and is commensurate with the nominal wind-luminosity relationship for O stars. Therefore, the "weak-wind problem"-identified from cool wind UV/optical spectra-is largely resolved by accounting for the hot wind seen in X-rays. From X-ray line profiles, Doppler shifts, and relative strengths, we find that this weak-wind star is typical of other late O dwarfs. The X-ray spectra do not suggest a magnetically confined plasma-the spectrum is soft and lines are broadened; Suzaku spectra confirm the lack of emission above 2 keV. Nor do the relative line shifts and widths suggest any wind decoupling by ions. The He-like triplets indicate that the bulk of the X-ray emission is formed rather close to the star, within five stellar radii. Our results challenge the idea that some OB stars are "weak-wind" stars that deviate from the standard wind-luminosity relationship. The wind is not weak, but it is hot and its bulk is only detectable in X-rays. KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: individual (mu Col) KW - stars: mass-loss KW - X-rays: stars Y1 - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/756/2/L34 SN - 2041-8205 VL - 756 IS - 2 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ignace, R. A1 - Hole, K. T. A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Rotter, J. P. T1 - An X-Ray Study of Two B plus B Binaries: AH Cep and CW Cep JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - AH Cep and CW Cep are both early B-type binaries with short orbital periods of 1.8. days and 2.7. days, respectively. All four components are B0.5V types. The binaries are also double-lined spectroscopic and eclipsing. Consequently, solutions for orbital and stellar parameters make the pair of binaries ideal targets for a study of the colliding winds between two B. stars. Chandra ACIS-I observations were obtained to determine X-ray luminosities. AH. Cep was detected with an unabsorbed X-ray luminosity at a 90% confidence interval of (9-33) x 10(30) erg s(-1), or (0.5-1.7) x 10(-7) L-Bol , relative to the combined Bolometric luminosities of the two components. While formally consistent with expectations for embedded wind shocks, or binary wind collision, the near-twin system of CW Cep was a surprising nondetection. For CW Cep, an upper limit was determined with L-X/L-Bol < 10(-8), again for the combined components. One difference between these two systems is that AH Cep is part of a multiple system. The X-rays from AH. Cep may not arise from standard wind shocks nor wind collision, but perhaps instead from magnetism in any one of the four components of the system. The possibility could be tested by searching for cyclic X-ray variability in AH. Cep on the short orbital period of the inner B. stars. KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: individual (AH Cep, CW Cep) KW - stars: massive KW - stars: winds KW - outflows X-rays: binaries Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/aa93ea SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 850 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Ignace, Richard A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Massa, D. T1 - A report on the X-ray properties of the tau Sco-like stars JF - Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society N2 - An increasing number of OB stars have been shown to possess magnetic fields. Although the sample remains small, it is surprising that the magnetic and X-ray properties of these stars appear to be far less correlated than expected. This contradicts model predictions, which generally indicate that the X-rays from magnetic stars are harder and more luminous than their non-magnetic counterparts. Instead, the X-ray properties of magnetic OB stars are quite diverse. tau Sco is one example where the expectations are better met. This bright main-sequence, early B star has been studied extensively in a variety of wavebands. It has a surface magnetic field of around 500 G, and Zeeman Doppler tomography has revealed an unusual field configuration. Furthermore, tau Sco displays an unusually hard X-ray spectrum, much harder than similar, non-magnetic OB stars. In addition, the profiles of its UV P Cygni wind lines have long been known to possess a peculiar morphology. Recently, two stars, HD 66665 and HD 63425, whose spectral types and UV wind line profiles are similar to those of tau Sco, have also been determined to be magnetic. In the hope of establishing a magnetic field - X-ray connection for at least a subset of the magnetic stars, we obtained XMM-Newton European Photon Imaging Camera spectra of these two objects. Our results for HD 66665 are somewhat inconclusive. No especially strong hard component is detected; however, the number of source counts is insufficient to rule out hard emission. Longer exposure is needed to assess the nature of the X-rays from this star. On the other hand, we do find that HD 63425 has a substantial hard X-ray component, thereby bolstering its close similarity to tau Sco. KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: individual: HD 63425 KW - stars: individual: HD 66665 KW - stars: magnetic field KW - X-rays: stars Y1 - 2013 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/sts358 SN - 0035-8711 VL - 429 IS - 1 SP - 516 EP - 522 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Irrgang, Andreas A1 - Geier, Stephan A1 - Heber, Ulrich A1 - Kupfer, Thomas A1 - Fürst, F. T1 - PG 1610+062: a runaway B star challenging classical ejection mechanisms JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - Hypervelocity stars are rare objects, mostly main-sequence (MS) B stars, traveling so fast that they will eventually escape from the Milky Way. Recently, it has been shown that the popular Hills mechanism, in which a binary system is disrupted via a close encounter with the supermassive black hole at the Galactic center, may not be their only ejection mechanism. The analyses of Gaia data ruled out a Galactic center origin for some of them, and instead indicated that they are extreme disk runaway stars ejected at velocities exceeding the predicted limits of classical scenarios (dynamical ejection from star clusters or binary supernova ejection). We present the discovery of a new extreme disk runaway star, PG 1610+062, which is a slowly pulsating B star bright enough to be studied in detail. A quantitative analysis of spectra taken with ESI at the Keck Observatory revealed that PG 1610+062 is a late B-type MS star of 4–5 M⊙ with low projected rotational velocity. Abundances (C, N, O, Ne, Mg, Al, Si, S, Ar, and Fe) were derived differentially with respect to the normal B star HD 137366 and indicate that PG 1610+062 is somewhat metal rich. A kinematic analysis, based on our spectrophotometric distance (17.3 kpc) and on proper motions from Gaia’s second data release, shows that PG 1610+062 was probably ejected from the Carina-Sagittarius spiral arm at a velocity of 550 ± 40 km s−1, which is beyond the classical limits. Accordingly, the star is in the top five of the most extreme MS disk runaway stars and is only the second among the five for which the chemical composition is known. KW - stars: abundances KW - stars: individual: HD 137366 KW - stars: kinematics and dynamics KW - stars: individual: PG 1610+062 KW - stars: early-type Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201935429 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 628 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Irrgang, Andreas A1 - Geier, Stephan A1 - Kreuzer, Simon A1 - Pelisoli, Ingrid Domingos A1 - Heber, Ulrich T1 - A stripped helium star in the potential black hole binary LB-1 JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - Context The recently claimed discovery of a massive (M-BH = 68(-13)(+11) M-circle dot) black hole in the Galactic solar neighborhood has led to controversial discussions because it severely challenges our current view of stellar evolution. Aims A crucial aspect for the determination of the mass of the unseen black hole is the precise nature of its visible companion, the B-type star LSV +22 25. Because stars of different mass can exhibit B-type spectra during the course of their evolution, it is essential to obtain a comprehensive picture of the star to unravel its nature and, thus, its mass. Methods To this end, we study the spectral energy distribution of LSV +22 25 and perform a quantitative spectroscopic analysis that includes the determination of chemical abundances for He, C, N, O, Ne, Mg, Al, Si, S, Ar, and Fe. Results Our analysis clearly shows that LSV +22 25 is not an ordinary main sequence B-type star. The derived abundance pattern exhibits heavy imprints of the CNO bi-cycle of hydrogen burning, that is, He and N are strongly enriched at the expense of C and O. Moreover, the elements Mg, Al, Si, S, Ar, and Fe are systematically underabundant when compared to normal main-sequence B-type stars. We suggest that LSV +22 25 is a stripped helium star and discuss two possible formation scenarios. Combining our photometric and spectroscopic results with the Gaia parallax, we infer a stellar mass of 1.1 +/- 0.5 M-circle dot. Based on the binary system's mass function, this yields a minimum mass of 2-3 M-circle dot for the compact companion, which implies that it may not necessarily be a black hole but a massive neutron- or main sequence star. Conclusions The star LSV +22 25 has become famous for possibly having a very massive black hole companion. However, a closer look reveals that the star itself is a very intriguing object. Further investigations are necessary for complete characterization of this object. KW - stars: abundances KW - stars: chemically peculiar KW - stars: early-type KW - pulsars: individual: LS V+22 25 Y1 - 2020 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201937343 SN - 0004-6361 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 633 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Krticka, Jiri A1 - Feldmeier, Achim T1 - Light variations due to the line-driven wind instability and wind blanketing in O stars JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - A small fraction of the radiative flux emitted by hot stars is absorbed by their winds and redistributed towards longer wavelengths. This effect, which leads also to the heating of the stellar photosphere, is termed wind blanketing. For stars with variable winds, the effect of wind blanketing may lead to the photometric variability. We have studied the consequences of line driven wind instability and wind blanketing for the light variability of O stars. We combined the results of wind hydrodynamic simulations and of global wind models to predict the light variability of hot stars due to the wind blanketing and instability. The wind instability causes stochastic light variability with amplitude of the order of tens of millimagnitudes and a typical timescale of the order of hours for spatially coherent wind structure. The amplitude is of the order of millimagnitudes when assuming that the wind consists of large number of independent concentric cones. The variability with such amplitude is observable using present space borne photometers. We show that the simulated light curve is similar to the light curves of O stars obtained using BRITE and CoRoT satellites. KW - stars: winds, outflows KW - stars: mass-loss KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: variables: general KW - hydrodynamics Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201731614 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 617 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Krtička, Jiří A1 - Feldmeier, Achim T1 - Stochastic light variations in hot stars from wind instability BT - finding photometric signatures and testing against the TESS data JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal / European Southern Observatory (ESO) N2 - Context Line-driven wind instability is expected to cause small-scale wind inhomogeneities, X-ray emission, and wind line profile variability. The instability can already develop around the sonic point if it is initiated close to the photosphere due to stochastic turbulent motions. In such cases, it may leave its imprint on the light curve as a result of wind blanketing. Aims We study the photometric signatures of the line-driven wind instability. Methods We used line-driven wind instability simulations to determine the wind variability close to the star. We applied two types of boundary perturbations: a sinusoidal one that enables us to study in detail the development of the instability and a stochastic one given by a Langevin process that provides a more realistic boundary perturbation. We estimated the photometric variability from the resulting mass-flux variations. The variability was simulated assuming that the wind consists of a large number of independent conical wind sectors. We compared the simulated light curves with TESS light curves of OB stars that show stochastic variability. Results We find two typical signatures of line-driven wind instability in photometric data: a knee in the power spectrum of magnitude fluctuations, which appears due to engulfment of small-scale structure by larger structures, and a negative skewness of the distribution of fluctuations, which is the result of spatial dominance of rarefied regions. These features endure even when combining the light curves from independent wind sectors. Conclusions The stochastic photometric variability of OB stars bears certain signatures of the line-driven wind instability. The distribution function of observed photometric data shows negative skewness and the power spectra of a fraction of light curves exhibit a knee. This can be explained as a result of the line-driven wind instability triggered by stochastic base perturbations. KW - stars: winds KW - outflows KW - stars: mass-loss KW - stars: early-type KW - hydrodynamics KW - instabilities KW - stars: variables: general Y1 - 2021 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/202040148 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 648 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Leto, Paolo A1 - Trigilio, C. A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Ignace, R. A1 - Buemi, C. S. A1 - Umana, G. A1 - Cavallaro, Francesco A1 - Ingallinera, A. A1 - Bufano, F. A1 - Phillips, N. M. A1 - Agliozzo, Claudia A1 - Cerrigone, L. A1 - Todt, Helge Tobias A1 - Riggi, S. A1 - Leone, Francesco T1 - The polarization mode of the auroral radio emission from the early-type star HD 142301 JF - Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society N2 - We report the detection of the auroral radio emission from the early-type magnetic star HD142301. New VLA observations of HD142301 detected highly polarized amplified emission occurring at fixed stellar orientations. The coherent emission mechanism responsible for the stellar auroral radio emission amplifies the radiation within a narrow beam, making the star where this phenomenon occurs similar to a radio lighthouse. The elementary emission process responsible for the auroral radiation mainly amplifies one of the two magneto-ionic modes of the electromagnetic wave. This explains why the auroral pulses are highly circularly polarized. The auroral radio emission of HD142301 is characterized by a reversal of the sense of polarization as the star rotates. The effective magnetic field curve of HD142301 is also available making it possible to correlate the transition from the left to the right-hand circular polarization sense ( and vice versa) of the auroral pulses with the known orientation of the stellar magnetic field. The results presented in this letter have implications for the estimation of the dominant magneto-ionic mode amplified within the HD142301 magnetosphere. KW - masers KW - polarization KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: individual: HD142301 KW - stars: magnetic field KW - radio continuum: stars Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/mnrasl/sly179 SN - 0035-8711 SN - 1365-2966 VL - 482 IS - 1 SP - L4 EP - L8 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Leto, Paolo A1 - Trigilio, C. A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Ignace, R. A1 - Buemi, C. S. A1 - Umana, G. A1 - Ingallinera, A. A1 - Todt, Helge Tobias A1 - Leone, F. T1 - The detection of variable radio emission from the fast rotating magnetic hot B-star HR 7355 and evidence for its X-ray aurorae JF - Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society N2 - In this paper, we investigate the multiwavelength properties of the magnetic early B-type star HR 7355. We present its radio light curves at several frequencies, taken with the Jansky Very Large Array, and X-ray spectra, taken with the XMM-Newton X-ray telescope. Modelling of the radio light curves for the Stokes I and V provides a quantitative analysis of the HR 7355 magnetosphere. A comparison between HR 7355 and a similar analysis for the Ap star CU Vir allows us to study how the different physical parameters of the two stars affect the structure of the respective magnetospheres where the non-thermal electrons originate. Our model includes a cold thermal plasma component that accumulates at high magnetic latitudes that influences the radio regime, but does not give rise to X-ray emission. Instead, the thermal X-ray emission arises from shocks generated by wind stream collisions close to the magnetic equatorial plane. The analysis of the X-ray spectrum of HR 7355 also suggests the presence of a non-thermal radiation. Comparison between the spectral index of the power-law X-ray energy distribution with the non-thermal electron energy distribution indicates that the non-thermal X-ray component could be the auroral signature of the non-thermal electrons that impact the stellar surface, the same non-thermal electrons that are responsible for the observed radio emission. On the basis of our analysis, we suggest a novel model that simultaneously explains the X-ray and the radio features of HR 7355 and is likely relevant for magnetospheres of other magnetic early-type stars. KW - stars: chemically peculiar KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: individual: HR 7355 KW - stars: magnetic field KW - radio continuum: stars KW - X-rays: stars Y1 - 2017 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stx267 SN - 0035-8711 SN - 1365-2966 VL - 467 SP - 2820 EP - 2833 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Leto, Paolo A1 - Trigilio, C. A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Ignace, R. A1 - Buemi, C. S. A1 - Umana, G. A1 - Ingallinera, A. A1 - Leone, Francesco A1 - Phillips, N. M. A1 - Agliozzo, Claudia A1 - Todt, Helge Tobias A1 - Cerrigone, L. T1 - A combined multiwavelength VLA/ALMA/Chandra study unveils the complex magnetosphere of the B-type star HR5907 JF - Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society N2 - We present new radio/millimeter measurements of the hot magnetic star HR5907 obtained with the VLA and ALMA interferometers. We find that HR5907 is the most radio luminous early type star in the cm-mm band among those presently known. Its multi-wavelength radio light curves are strongly variable with an amplitude that increases with radio frequency. The radio emission can be explained by the populations of the non-thermal electrons accelerated in the current sheets on the outer border of the magnetosphere of this fast-rotating magnetic star. We classify HR5907 as another member of the growing class of strongly magnetic fast-rotating hot stars where the gyro-synchrotron emission mechanism efficiently operates in their magnetospheres. The new radio observations of HR5907 are combined with archival X-ray data to study the physical condition of its magnetosphere. The X-ray spectra of HR5907 show tentative evidence for the presence of non-thermal spectral component. We suggest that non-thermal X-rays originate a stellar X-ray aurora due to streams of non-thermal electrons impacting on the stellar surface. Taking advantage of the relation between the spectral indices of the X-ray power-law spectrum and the non-thermal electron energy distributions, we perform 3-D modelling of the radio emission for HR5907. The wavelength-dependent radio light curves probe magnetospheric layers at different heights above the stellar surface. A detailed comparison between simulated and observed radio light curves leads us to conclude that the stellar magnetic field of HR 5907 is likely non-dipolar, providing further indirect evidence of the complex magnetic field topology of HR5907. KW - stars: chemically peculiar KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: individual: HR 5907 KW - stars: magnetic field KW - radio continuum: stars KW - X-rays: stars Y1 - 2018 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/sty244 SN - 0035-8711 SN - 1365-2966 VL - 476 IS - 1 SP - 562 EP - 579 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Liermann, A. A1 - Hamann, Wolf-Rainer A1 - Oskinova, Lida T1 - The Quintuplet cluster III. Hertzsprung-Russell diagram and cluster age JF - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal N2 - The Quintuplet, one of three massive stellar clusters in the Galactic center (GC), is located about 30 pc in projection from Sagittarius A*. We aim at the construction of the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram (HRD) of the cluster to study its evolution and to constrain its star-formation history. For this purpose we use the most complete spectral catalog of the Quintuplet stars. Based on the K-band spectra we determine stellar temperatures and luminosities for all stars in the catalog under the assumption of a uniform reddening towards the cluster. We find two groups in the resulting HRD: early-type OB stars and late-type KM stars, well separated from each other. By comparison with Geneva stellar evolution models we derive initial masses exceeding 8 M-circle dot for the OB stars. In the HRD these stars are located along an isochrone corresponding to an age of about 4 Myr. This confirms previous considerations, where a similar age estimate was based on the presence of evolved Wolf-Rayet stars in the cluster. We derive number ratios for the various spectral subtype groups (e.g. N-WR/N-O, N-WC/N-WN) and compare them with predictions of population synthesis models. We find that an instantaneous burst of star formation at about 3.3 to 3.6 Myr ago is the most likely scenario to form the Quintuplet cluster. Furthermore, we apply a mass-luminosity relation to construct the initial mass function (IMF) of the cluster. We find indications for a slightly top-heavy IMF. The late-type stars in the LHO catalog are red giant branch (RGB) stars or red supergiants (RSGs) according to their spectral signatures. Under the assumption that they are located at about the distance of the Galactic center we can derive their luminosities. The comparison with stellar evolution models reveals that the initial masses of these stars are lower than 15 M-circle dot implying that they needed about 15 Myr (RSG) or even more than 30 Myr (RGB) to evolve into their present stage. It might be suspected that these late-type stars do not physically belong to the Quintuplet cluster. Indeed, most of them disqualify as cluster members because their radial velocities differ too much from the cluster average. Nevertheless, five of the brightest RGB/RSG stars from the LHO catalog share the mean radial velocity of the Quintuplet, and thus remain highly suspect for being gravitationally bound members. If so, this would challenge the cluster formation and evolution scenario. KW - stars: late-type KW - Hertzsprung-Russell and C-M diagrams KW - infrared: stars KW - stars: early-type KW - open cluster and associations: individual: Quintuplet Y1 - 2012 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201117534 SN - 0004-6361 VL - 540 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - GEN A1 - Liermann, Angelika A1 - Hamann, Wolf-Rainer A1 - Oskinova, Lida T1 - The quintuplet cluster III. Hertzsprung-Russell diagram and cluster age (vol 540, pg A14, 2012) T2 - Astronomy and astrophysics : an international weekly journal KW - open clusters and associations: individual: Quintuplet KW - infrared: stars KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: late-type KW - Hertzsprung-Russell and C-M diagrams KW - errata, addenda Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201117534e SN - 0004-6361 SN - 1432-0746 VL - 563 PB - EDP Sciences CY - Les Ulis ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Massa, D. A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Fullerton, A. W. A1 - Prinja, R. K. A1 - Bohlender, D. A. A1 - Morrison, N. D. A1 - Blake, M. A1 - Pych, W. T1 - CIR modulation of the X-ray flux from the O7.5 III(n)((f)) star xi Persei(a similar to...)? JF - Monthly notices of the Royal Astronomical Society N2 - We analyse a 162 ks high energy transmission grating Chandra observation of the O7.5 III(n)((f)) star xi Per, together with contemporaneous H alpha observations. The X-ray spectrum of this star is similar to other single O stars, and not pathological in any way. Its UV wind lines are known to display cyclical time variability, with a period of 2.086 d, which is thought to be associated with corotating interaction regions (CIRs). We examine the Chandra and H alpha data for variability on this time-scale. We find that the X-rays vary by similar to 15 per cent over the course of the observations and that this variability is out of phase with variable absorption on the blue wing of the H alpha profiles (assumed to be a surrogate for the UV absorption associated with CIRs). While not conclusive, both sets of data are consistent with models where the CIRs are either a source of X-rays or modulate them. KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: individual: xi Persei KW - stars: mass loss KW - stars: winds, outflows KW - X-rays: stars Y1 - 2014 U6 - https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stu565 SN - 0035-8711 SN - 1365-2966 VL - 441 IS - 3 SP - 2173 EP - 2180 PB - Oxford Univ. Press CY - Oxford ER - TY - JOUR A1 - Massa, Derck A1 - Oskinova, Lida A1 - Prinja, Raman A1 - Ignace, Richard T1 - Coordinated UV and X-Ray Spectroscopic Observations of the O-type Giant xi Per BT - the Connection between X-Rays and Large-scale Wind Structure JF - The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics N2 - We present new, contemporaneous Hubble Space Telescope STIS and XMM-Newton observations of the O7. III(n) ((f)) star xi Per. We supplement the new data with archival IUE spectra, to analyze the variability of the wind lines and X-ray flux of xi Per. The variable wind of this star is known to have a 2.086-day periodicity. We use a simple, heuristic spot model that fits the low-velocity (near-surface) IUE wind line variability very well, to demonstrate that the low-velocity absorption in the new STIS spectra of N IV lambda 1718 and Si IV lambda 1402 vary with the same 2.086-day period. It is remarkable that the period and amplitude of the STIS data agree with those of the IUE spectra obtained 22 yr earlier. We also show that the time variability of the new XMM-Newton fluxes is also consistent with the 2.086-day period. Thus, our new, multiwavelength coordinated observations demonstrate that the mechanism that causes the UV wind line variability is also responsible for a significant fraction of the X-rays in single O stars. The sequence of events for the multiwavelength light-curve minima is Si IV lambda 1402, N IV lambda 1718, and X-ray flux, each separated by a phase of about 0.06 relative to the 2.086-day period. Analysis of the X-ray fluxes shows that they become softer as they weaken. This is contrary to expectations if the variability is caused by periodic excess absorption. Furthermore, the high-resolution X-ray spectra suggest that the individual emission lines at maximum are more strongly blueshifted. If we interpret the low-velocity wind line light curves in terms of our model, it implies that there are two bright regions, i.e., regions with less absorption, separated by 180 degrees, on the surface of the star. We note that the presence and persistence of two spots separated by 180 degrees suggest that a weak dipole magnetic field is responsible for the variability of the UV wind line absorption and X-ray flux in xi Per. KW - stars: activity KW - stars: early-type KW - stars: winds, outflows KW - ultraviolet: stars KW - X-rays: stars Y1 - 2019 U6 - https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4357/ab0283 SN - 0004-637X SN - 1538-4357 VL - 873 IS - 1 PB - IOP Publ. Ltd. CY - Bristol ER -