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Two-dimensional modeling of density and thermal structure of dense circumstellar outflowing disks
(2018)
Context. Evolution of massive stars is affected by a significant loss of mass either via (nearly) spherically symmetric stellar winds or by aspherical mass-loss mechanisms, namely the outflowing equatorial disks. However, the scenario that leads to the formation of a disk or rings of gas and dust around massive stars is still under debate. It is also unclear how various forming physical mechanisms of the circumstellar environment affect its shape and density, as well as its kinematic and thermal structure. Results. Our models show the geometric distribution and contribution of viscous heating that begins to dominate in the central part of the disk for mass-loss rates higher than (M) over dot greater than or similar to 10(-10) M-circle dot yr(-1). In the models of dense viscous disks with (M) over dot > 10(-8) M-circle dot yr(-1), the viscosity increases the central temperature up to several tens of thousands of Kelvins, however the temperature rapidly drops with radius and with distance from the disk midplane. The high mass-loss rates and high viscosity lead to instabilities with significant waves or bumps in density and temperature in the very inner disk region. Conclusions. The two-dimensional radial-vertical models of dense outflowing disks including the full Navier-Stokes viscosity terms show very high temperatures that are however limited to only the central disk cores inside the optically thick area, while near the edge of the optically thick region the temperature may be low enough for the existence of neutral hydrogen, for example.
Recent studies have claimed the existence of very massive stars (VMS) up to 300 M⊙ in the local Universe. As this finding may represent a paradigm shift for the canonical stellar upper-mass limit of 150 M⊙, it is timely to discuss the status of the data, as well as the far-reaching implications of such objects. We held a Joint Discussion at the General Assembly in Beijing to discuss (i) the determination of the current masses of the most massive stars, (ii) the formation of VMS, (iii) their mass loss, and (iv) their evolution and final fate. The prime aim was to reach broad consensus between observers and theorists on how to identify and quantify the dominant physical processes.
Context. Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars have a severe impact on their environments owing to their strong ionizing radiation fields and powerful stellar winds. Since these winds are considered to be driven by radiation pressure, it is theoretically expected that the degree of the wind mass-loss depends on the initial metallicity of WR stars.
Aims. Following our comprehensive studies of WR stars in the Milky Way, M31, and the LMC, we derive stellar parameters and mass-loss rates for all seven putatively single WN stars known in the SMC. Based on these data, we discuss the impact of a low-metallicity environment on the mass loss and evolution of WR stars.
Methods. The quantitative analysis of the WN stars is performed with the Potsdam Wolf-Rayet (PoWR) model atmosphere code. The physical properties of our program stars are obtained from fitting synthetic spectra to multi-band observations.
Results. In all SMC WN stars, a considerable surface hydrogen abundance is detectable. The majority of these objects have stellar temperatures exceeding 75 kK, while their luminosities range from 10(5.5) to 10(6.1) L-circle dot. The WN stars in the SMC exhibit on average lower mass-loss rates and weaker winds than their counterparts in the Milky Way, M31, and the LMC.
Conclusions. By comparing the mass-loss rates derived for WN stars in different Local Group galaxies, we conclude that a clear dependence of the wind mass-loss on the initial metallicity is evident, supporting the current paradigm that WR winds are driven by radiation. A metallicity effect on the evolution of massive stars is obvious from the HRD positions of the SMC WN stars at high temperatures and high luminosities. Standard evolution tracks are not able to reproduce these parameters and the observed surface hydrogen abundances. Homogeneous evolution might provide a better explanation for their evolutionary past.
WR 148 (HD 197406) is an extreme runaway system considered to be a potential candidate for a short-period (4.3173 d) rare WR + compact object binary. Provided with new high-resolution, high signal-to-noise spectra from the Keck observatory, we determine the orbital parameters for both the primary WR and the secondary, yielding respective projected orbital velocity amplitudes of 88.1 ± 3.8 km s−1 and 79.2 ± 3.1 km s−1 and implying a mass ratio of 1.1 ± 0.1. We then apply the shift-and-add technique to disentangle the spectra and obtain spectra compatible with a WN7ha and an O4-6 star. Considering an orbital inclination of ∼67°, derived from previous polarimetry observations, the system's total mass would be a mere 2–3M⊙⁠, an unprecedented result for a putative massive binary system. However, a system comprising a 37M⊙ secondary (typical mass of an O5V star) and a 33M⊙ primary (given the mass ratio) would infer an inclination of ∼18°. We therefore reconsider the previous methods of deriving the orbital inclination based on time-dependent polarimetry and photometry. While the polarimetric results are inconclusive requiring better data, the photometric results favour low inclinations. Finally, we compute WR 148’s space velocity and retrace the runaway's trajectory back to the Galactic plane (GP). With an ejection velocity of 198 ± 27 km s−1 and a travel time of 4.7 ± 0.8 Myr to reach its current location, WR 148 was most likely ejected via dynamical interactions in a young cluster.
We investigate the connections between the magnetic fields and the X-ray emission from massive stars. Our study shows that the X-ray properties of known strongly magnetic stars are diverse: while some comply to the predictions of the magnetically confined wind model, others do not. We conclude that strong, hard, and variable X-ray emission may be a sufficient attribute of magnetic massive stars, but it is not a necessary one. We address the general properties of X-ray emission from "normal" massive stars, especially the long standing mystery about the correlations between the parameters of X-ray emission and fundamental stellar properties. The recent development in stellar structure modeling shows that small-scale surface magnetic fields may be common. We suggest a "hybrid" scenario which could explain the X-ray emission from massive stars by a combination of magnetic mechanisms on the surface and shocks in the stellar wind. The magnetic mechanisms and the wind shocks are triggered by convective motions in sub-photospheric layers. This scenario opens the door for a natural explanation of the well established correlation between bolometric and X-ray luminosities.