Jesús Alberto Toala, Lidia M. Oskinova, Wolf-Rainer Hamann, Richard Ignace, Andreas Alexander Christoph Sander, Tomer Shenar, Helge Tobias Todt, Y. -H. Chu, Martin A. Guerrero, Rainer Hainich, Jose Miguel Torrejon
- Among the different types of massive stars in advanced evolutionary stages is the enigmatic WN8h type. There are only a few Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars with this spectral type in our Galaxy. It has long been suggested that WN8h-type stars are the products of binary evolution that may harbor neutron stars (NS). One of the most intriguing WN8h stars is the runaway WR 124 surrounded by its magnificent nebula M1-67. We test the presence of an accreting NS companion in WR 124 using similar to 100 ks long observations by the Chandra X-ray observatory. The hard X-ray emission from WR 124 with a luminosity of L-X similar to 10(31) erg s(-1) is marginally detected. We use the non-local thermodynamic equilibrium stellar atmosphere code PoWR to estimate the WR wind opacity to the X-rays. The wind of a WN8-type star is effectively opaque for X-rays, hence the low X-ray luminosity of WR 124 does not rule out the presence of an embedded compact object. We suggest that, in general, high-opacity WR winds could prevent X-ray detections of embedded NS, andAmong the different types of massive stars in advanced evolutionary stages is the enigmatic WN8h type. There are only a few Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars with this spectral type in our Galaxy. It has long been suggested that WN8h-type stars are the products of binary evolution that may harbor neutron stars (NS). One of the most intriguing WN8h stars is the runaway WR 124 surrounded by its magnificent nebula M1-67. We test the presence of an accreting NS companion in WR 124 using similar to 100 ks long observations by the Chandra X-ray observatory. The hard X-ray emission from WR 124 with a luminosity of L-X similar to 10(31) erg s(-1) is marginally detected. We use the non-local thermodynamic equilibrium stellar atmosphere code PoWR to estimate the WR wind opacity to the X-rays. The wind of a WN8-type star is effectively opaque for X-rays, hence the low X-ray luminosity of WR 124 does not rule out the presence of an embedded compact object. We suggest that, in general, high-opacity WR winds could prevent X-ray detections of embedded NS, and be an explanation for the apparent lack of WR+NS systems.…
MetadatenAuthor details: | Jesús Alberto ToalaORCiD, Lidia M. OskinovaORCiDGND, Wolf-Rainer HamannORCiDGND, Richard IgnaceORCiD, Andreas Alexander Christoph SanderORCiDGND, Tomer ShenarORCiDGND, Helge Tobias TodtORCiD, Y. -H. Chu, Martin A. GuerreroORCiD, Rainer HainichGND, Jose Miguel TorrejonORCiD |
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DOI: | https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/aaf39d |
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ISSN: | 2041-8205 |
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ISSN: | 2041-8213 |
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Title of parent work (English): | The astrophysical journal : an international review of spectroscopy and astronomical physics ; Part 2, Letters |
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Subtitle (English): | the Curious Case of WR124 |
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Publisher: | IOP Publ. Ltd. |
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Place of publishing: | Bristol |
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Publication type: | Article |
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Language: | English |
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Date of first publication: | 2018/12/06 |
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Publication year: | 2018 |
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Release date: | 2020/12/14 |
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Tag: | ISM: jets and outflows; circumstellar matter; stars: Wolf-Rayet; stars: evolution; stars: massive; stars: neutron |
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Volume: | 869 |
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Issue: | 1 |
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Number of pages: | 5 |
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Funding institution: | National Aeronautics & Space Administration (NASA), Programa de Apoyo a Proyectos de Investigacion e Innovacion Tecnologica (PAPIIT), Universidad Nacional Autonoma de Mexico, German Aerospace Centre (DLR), Russian Government Program of Competitive Growth of Kazan Federal University, German Research Foundation (DFG), Science & Technology Facilities Council (STFC), Ministry of Science and Technology, Taiwan |
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Organizational units: | Mathematisch-Naturwissenschaftliche Fakultät / Institut für Physik und Astronomie |
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DDC classification: | 5 Naturwissenschaften und Mathematik / 52 Astronomie / 520 Astronomie und zugeordnete Wissenschaften |
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Peer review: | Referiert |
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Publishing method: | Open Access / Green Open-Access |
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