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Interferometric studies of rapid rotators

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  12 July 2011

Ming Zhao ,
John D. Monnier  and
Xiao Che
Ming Zhao
Affiliation:
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, 4800 Oak Grove Dr, Pasadena, CA 91101 email: ming.zhao@jpl.nasa.gov
John D. Monnier
Affiliation:
Dept. of Astronomy, University of Michigan, 500 Church St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Xiao Che
Affiliation:
Dept. of Astronomy, University of Michigan, 500 Church St., Ann Arbor, MI 48109
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Abstract

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Stellar rotation, like stellar mass and metallicity, is a fundamental property of stars. Rapid rotation distorts the stellar photosphere and affects a star's luminosity, abundances and evolution. It is also linked to stellar wind and mass loss. The distortion of the stellar photosphere due to rapid rotation causes the stellar surface brightness and effective temperature to vary with latitude, leading to a bright pole and a dark equator - a phenomenon known as ‘Gravity Darkening’. Thanks to the development of long baseline optical interferometry in recent years, optical interferometers have resolved the elongation of rapidly rotating stars, and have even imaged a few systems for the first time, directly confirming the gravity darkening effect. In this paper, we review the recent interferometric studies of rapid rotators, particularly the imaging results from CHARA-MIRC. These sub-milliarcsecond resolution observations permit the determination of the inclination, the polar and equatorial radius and temperature, as well as the fractional rotation speed of several rapid rotators with unprecedented precision. The modeling also allows the determination of the true effective temperatures and luminosities of these stars, permitting the investigation of their true locations on the HR diagram. Discrepancies from standard models were also found in some measurements, suggesting the requirement of more sophisticated mechanisms such as non-uniform rotation in the model. These observations have demonstrated that optical interferometry is now sufficiently mature to provide valuable constraints and even model-independent images to shed light on the basic physics of stars.

Keywords

stars: fundamental parametersstars: rotationstars: imagingtechniques: interferometric
Type
Contributed Papers
Information
Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 6 , Symposium S272: Active OB stars: structure, evolution, mass loss, and critical limits , July 2010 , pp. 44 - 55
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2011

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