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Register a new userResolving the extended stellar atmospheres of Asymptotic Giant Branch stars at (sub-)millimetre wavelengths
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The initial conditions for the mass loss during the asymptotic giant branch (AGB) phase are set in their extended atmospheres, where, among others, convection and pulsation driven shocks determine the physical conditions. High resolution observations of AGB stars at (sub)millimetre wavelengths can now directly determine the morphology, activity, density, and temperature close to the stellar photosphere. We used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) high angular resolution observations to resolve the extended atmospheres of four of the nearest AGB stars: W Hya, Mira A, R Dor and R Leo. We interpreted the observations using a parameterised atmosphere model. We resolve all four AGB stars and determine the brightness temperature structure between $1$ and $2$ stellar radii. For W Hya and R Dor we confirm the existence of hotspots with brightness temperatures $>3000$ to $10000$~K. All four stars show deviations from spherical symmetry. We find variations on a timescale of days to weeks, and for R Leo we directly measure an outward motion of the millimetre wavelength surface with a velocity of at least $10.6pm1.4$~km~s$^{-1}$. For all objects but W Hya we find that the temperature-radius and size-frequency relations require the existence of a (likely inhomogeneous) layer of enhanced opacity. The ALMA observations provide a unique probe of the structure of the extended AGB atmosphere. We find highly variable structures of hotspots and likely convective cells. In the future, these observations can be directly compared to multi-dimensional chromosphere and atmosphere models that determine the temperature, density, velocity, and ionisation structure between the stellar photosphere and the dust formation region. However, our results show that for the best interpretation, both very accurate flux calibration and near-simultaneous observations are essential.
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Multiple stellar populations (MPs) are a distinct characteristic of Globular Clusters (GCs). Their general properties have been widely studied among main sequence, red giant branch (RGB) and horizontal branch (HB) stars, but a common framework is still missing at later evolutionary stages. We studied the MP phenomenon along the AGB sequences in 58 GCs, observed with the Hubble Space Telescope in ultraviolet (UV) and optical filters. By using UV-optical color-magnitude diagrams, we selected the AGB members of each cluster and identified the AGB candidates of the metal-enhanced population in type II GCs. We studied the photometric properties of AGB stars and compared them to theoretical models derived from synthetic spectra analysis. We observe the following features: i) the spread of AGB stars in photometric indices sensitive to variations of light-elements and helium is typically larger than that expected from photometric errors; ii) the fraction of metal-enhanced stars in the AGB is lower than in the RGB in most of the type II GCs; iii) the fraction of 1G stars derived from the chromosome map of AGB stars in 15 GCs is larger than that of RGB stars; v) the AGB/HB frequency correlates with the average mass of the most helium-enriched population. These findings represent a clear evidence of the presence of MPs along the AGB of Galactic GCs and indicate that a significant fraction of helium-enriched stars, which have lower mass in the HB, does not evolve to the AGB phase, leaving the HB sequence towards higher effective temperatures, as predicted by the AGB-manque scenario.
This paper presents a summary of four invited and twelve contributed presentations on asymptotic giant branch stars and red supergiants, given over the course of two afternoon splinter sessions at the 19th Cool Stars Workshop. It highlights both recent observations and recent theory, with some emphasis on high spatial resolution, over a wide range of wavelengths. Topics covered include 3D models, convection, binary interactions, mass loss, dust formation and magnetic fields.
We present an imaging study of a sample of eight asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars in the HI 21-cm line. Using observations from the Very Large Array, we have unambiguously detected HI emission associated with the extended circumstellar envelopes of six of the targets. The detected HI masses range from M_HI ~ 0.015-0.055 M_sun. The HI morphologies and kinematics are diverse, but in all cases appear to be significantly influenced by the interaction between the circumstellar envelope and the surrounding medium. Four stars (RX Lep, Y UMa, Y CVn, and V1942 Sgr) are surrounded by detached HI shells ranging from 0.36 to 0.76 pc across. We interpret these shells as resulting from material entrained in a stellar outflow being abruptly slowed at a termination shock where it meets the local medium. RX Lep and TX Psc, two stars with moderately high space velocities (V_space>56 km/s), exhibit extended gaseous wakes (~0.3 and 0.6 pc in the plane of the sky), trailing their motion through space. The other detected star, R Peg, displays a peculiar horseshoe-shaped HI morphology with emission extended on scales up to ~1.7 pc; in this case, the circumstellar debris may have been distorted by transverse flows in the local interstellar medium. We briefly discuss our new results in the context of the entire sample of evolved stars that has been imaged in HI to date.
We explore the detailed and broad properties of carbon burning in Super Asymptotic Giant Branch (SAGB) stars with 2755 MESA stellar evolution models. The location of first carbon ignition, quenching location of the carbon burning flames and flashes, angular frequency of the carbon core, and carbon core mass are studied as a function of the ZAMS mass, initial rotation rate, and mixing parameters such as convective overshoot, semiconvection, thermohaline and angular momentum transport. In general terms, we find these properties of carbon burning in SAGB models are not a strong function of the initial rotation profile, but are a sensitive function of the overshoot parameter. We quasi-analytically derive an approximate ignition density, $rho_{ign} approx 2.1 times 10^6$ g cm$^{-3}$, to predict the location of first carbon ignition in models that ignite carbon off-center. We also find that overshoot moves the ZAMS mass boundaries where off-center carbon ignition occurs at a nearly uniform rate of $Delta M_{rm ZAMS}$/$Delta f_{rm{ov}}approx$ 1.6 $M_{odot}$. For zero overshoot, $f_{rm{ov}}$=0.0, our models in the ZAMS mass range $approx$ 8.9 to 11 $M_{odot}$ show off-center carbon ignition. For canonical amounts of overshooting, $f_{rm{ov}}$=0.016, the off-center carbon ignition range shifts to $approx$ 7.2 to 8.8 $M_{odot}$. Only systems with $f_{rm{ov}}$ $geq 0.01$ and ZAMS mass $approx$ 7.2-8.0 $M_{odot}$ show carbon burning is quenched a significant distance from the center. These results suggest a careful assessment of overshoot modeling approximations on claims that carbon burning quenches an appreciable distance from the center of the carbon core.
Eleven nearby (<300 pc), short-period (50-130 days) asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars were observed in the CO J = (2-1) line. Detections were made towards objects that have evidence for dust production (Ks-[22] >~ 0.55 mag; AK Hya, V744 Cen, RU Crt, alpha Her). Stars below this limit were not detected (BQ Gem, eps Oct, NU Pav, II Hya, CL Hyi, ET Vir, SX Pav). Ks-[22] colour is found to trace mass-loss rate to well within an order of magnitude. This confirms existing results, indicating a factor of 100 increase in AGB-star mass-loss rates at a pulsation period of ~60 days, similar to the known superwind trigger at ~300 days. Between ~60 and ~300 days, an approximately constant mass-loss rate and wind velocity of ~3.7 x 10^-7 solar masses per year and ~8 km/s is found. While this has not been corrected for observational biases, this rapid increase in mass-loss rate suggests a need to recalibrate the treatment of AGB mass loss in stellar evolution models. The comparative lack of correlation between mass-loss rate and luminosity (for L <~ 6300 solar luminosities) suggests that the mass-loss rates of low-luminosity AGB-star winds are set predominantly by pulsations, not radiation pressure on dust, which sets only the outflow velocity. We predict that mass-loss rates from low-luminosity AGB stars, which exhibit optically thin winds, should be largely independent of metallicity, but may be strongly dependent on stellar mass.
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