S. A. Lamzin

Interpretation of the veiling of the photospheric spectrum for T Tauri stars in terms of an accretion model

The problem on heating the atmospheres of T Tauri stars by radiation from an accretion shock has been solved. The structure and radiation spectrum of the emerging so-called hot spot have been calculated in the LTE approximation. The emission not only in continuum but also in lines has been taken into account for the first time when calculating the spot spectrum. Comparison with observations has shown that the strongest of these lines manifest themselves as narrow components of helium and metal emission lines, while the weaker ones decrease significantly the depth of photospheric absorption lines, although until now, this effect has been thought to be due to the emission continuum alone. The veiling by lines changes the depth of different photospheric lines to a very different degree even within a narrow spectral range. Therefore, the nonmonotonic wavelength dependence of the degree of veiling r found for some CTTS does not suggest a nontrivial spectral energy distribution of the veiling continuum. In general, it makes sense to specify the degree of veiling r only by providing the set of photospheric lines from which this quantity was determined. We show that taking into account the contribution of lines to the veiling of the photospheric spectrum can cause the existing estimates of the accretion rate onto T Tauri stars to decrease by several times, with this being also true for stars with a comparatively weakly veiled spectrum. Neglecting the contribution of lines to the veiling can also lead to appreciable errors in determining the effective temperature, interstellar extinction, radial velocity, and v sin i.

Possible Variability of the Magnetic Field of T Tau

Using the Main Stellar Spectrograph of the 6-m Special Astrophysical Observatory telescope equipped with a polametric analyzer, we measured the longitudinal magnetic field component B∥ for the T Tauri stars T Tau and AS 507 on January 16 and 18 and February 15, 2003. For both stars, we determined only the upper limits on B∥ from photospheric lines: +15±30 G for T Tau and −70±90 G for AS 507. The magnetic field of AS 507 was not measured previously, while B∥ for T Tau is lower than its values that we obtained in 1996 and 2002 (B∥≂150±50G), suggesting that the longitudinal magnetic field component in the photosphere of T Tau is variable. We also measured the longitudinal magnetic field component for T Tau in the formation region of the He I 5876 Å emission line. We found B∥ in this region to be ⋍+650, ⋍+350, and ⋍+1100 G on January 16, 18, and February 15, 2003, respectively. Our observations on January 18 and February 15 correspond to virtually the same phase of the stars rotation period, but the profiles of the He I 5876 Å line differ markedly on these two nights. Therefore, we believe that the threefold difference between the B∥ values on these nights does not result from observational errors. We discuss the possible causes of the B∥ variability in the photosphere and the magnetosphere of T Tau.

Magnetic field of the young star RW Aur

Results of ourmeasurements of the longitudinal magnetic field Bz for the young star RWAur A are presented. Bz measured from the so-called narrow component of the He I 5876 line varies in the range from −1.47 ± 0.15 to +1.10 ± 0.15 kG. Our data are consistent with a stellar rotation period of }~5.6 days and the model of two hot spots with opposite magnetic field polarities spaced about 180° apart in longitude. Relative to the Earth, the spot with Bz < 0 lies in the hemisphere above the midplane of the accretion disk, while the spot with Bz > 0 is below the midplane. The upper limit for Bz (at the 3σ level) obtained by averaging all observations is 180 G for the photosphere and 220 and 230 G for the Hα and [OI] 6300 line formation regions, respectively. We have also failed to detect a field in the formation region of broad emission line components: the upper limit for Bz is 600 G. In two of 11 cases, we have detected a magnetic field in the formation region of the blue absorption wing of the Na I D doublet lines, i.e., in the wind from RW Aur A: Bz = −180 ± 50 and −810 ± 80 G. The radial velocity of the photospheric lines in RW Aur A averaged over all our observations is }~+10.5 km s−1, i.e., a value lower than that obtained by Petrov et al. (2001) ten years earlier by 5.5 km s−1. Therefore, we discuss the possibility that RW Aur is not a binary but a triple system.

Dynamo model with a small number of modes and magnetic activity of T Tauri stars

We suggest a model based on the representation of the stellar magnetic field as a superposition of a finite number of poloidal and toroidal free decay modes to describe the dynamo action in fully convective stars. For the adopted law of stellar differential rotation, we determined the dynamo number in exceeding which the generation of a cyclically varying magnetic field is possible in stars without a radiative core and derived an expression for the period of the cycle. The dynamo cycles in fully convective stars and in stars with thin convective envelopes are shown to differ qualitatively: first, the distributions of spots in latitude during the cycle are different for these two types of stars and, second, the model predicts a great weakening of the spot formation in fully convective stars at certain phases of the cycle. To compare the theory with observations, we have analyzed the historical light curve for the weak-line T Tauri star V410 Tau and found that its long-term activity is not a well-defined cycle with a definite period—its activity is more likely quasi-cyclic with a characteristic time of ∼4 yr and with a chaotic component superimposed. we have also concluded that a redistribution of spots in longitude is responsible for the secular brightness variations in the star. This does not allow the results of photometric observations to be directly compared with predictions of ourmodel, in which, for simplicity, we assumed a symmetry in longitude and investigated the temporal evolution of the spot distribution in latitude. Therefore, we discuss the questions of what and how observations can be compared with predictions of the dynamo theory.

Kinematics and parameters of the gas in the vicinity of TW Hya

AbstractThe following conclusions about the kinematics and parameters of the gas in the vicinity of TW Hya have been drawn from an analysis of optical and ultraviolet line profiles and intensities. The accreting matter rises in the magnetosphere to a distance z>R* above the disk plane and falls to the star near its equator almost perpendicular to its plane. The matter outflows from a disk region with an outer radius of ≤0.5 AU. The [OI], [SII], and H2 lines originate in the disk atmosphere outside the outflow region, where the turbulent gas velocity is close to the local speed of sound. In the formation region of the forbidden lines, T⋍8500 K and Ne⋍5×106 cm−3, and the hydrogen is almost neutral: xe<0.03. The absorption features observed in the blue wings of some of the ultraviolet lines originate in the part of the wind that moves almost perpendicular to the disk plane, i.e., in the jet of TW Hya. The Vz gas velocity component in the jet decreases with increasing distance from the jet axis from 200 to 30 km s−1. The matter outflowing from the inner disk boundary, moves perpendicular to the disk plane in the formation region of blue absorption line components, at a distance of ∼0.5 AU from the axis of symmetry of the disk. This region of the wind is collimated into the jet at a distance of <3 AU from the disk plane. The gas temperature in the formation region of absorption components is ⋍2×104 K, and the gas density is <3×106 cm−3. This region of the jet is on the order of several AU away from the disk plane, while free recombination in the jet begins even farther from the disk. The mass-loss rate for TW Hya is

Analysis of HST ultraviolet spectra for T Tauri stars: RU Lup

\dot M_w < 7 \times 10^{ - 10} M_ \odot yr^{ - 1}

New results of magnetic field measurements for BP tau

, which is a factor of 3lower than the mean accretion rate. The relative abundance of silicon and aluminum in the jet gas is at least an order of magnitude lower than its standard value.

Formation of Fe X{Fe XIV coronal lines in the accretion shock of T Tauri stars

We have calculated profiles of the CIV 1550, NV 1240, OVI 1035, and SiIV 1400 resonance doublets for a plane-parallel shock viewed at various angles. Calculations were performed for the range of preshock gas velocities V0 and gas densities ρ0 appropriate for classical T Tauri stars. The parameters of accretion shocks in young stars can be determined by comparing the calculated and observed profiles of the studied lines and their relative intensities. It is not possible to derive the parameters of the accreting gas from the line profiles without knowing the geometry of the accretion zone. The relation Iv(µ,V0,ρ0) for a plane shock, where Iv is the intensity μ=cosθ, can be used to determine the accretion parameters by either choosing a geometry for the radiating region or using a technique similar to Doppler tomography. The results obtained for DR Tau, T Tau, and RY Tau indicate that, in contrast to current concepts, the inner regions of the accretion disk are not disrupted by the magnetic field of the star, and the disk reaches the stellar surface. As a result, only a small fraction of the accreted matter passes through the shock and falls onto the star.