V. H. Hoffmeister

A spectroscopic survey on the multiplicity of high-mass stars

The formation of stars above about 20 M⊙ and their apparently high multiplicity remain heavily debated subjects in astrophysics. We have performed a vast high-resolution radial velocity spectroscopic survey of about 250 O- and 540 B-type stars in the southern Milky Way which indicates that the majority of stars (>82 per cent) with masses above 16 M⊙ form close binary systems while this fraction rapidly drops to 20 per cent for stars of 3 M⊙. The binary fractions of O-type stars among different environment classes are: clusters (72 ± 13 per cent), associations (73 ± 8 per cent), field (43 ± 13 per cent) and runaways (69 ± 11 per cent). The high frequency of close pairs with components of similar mass argues in favour of a multiplicity originating from the formation process rather than from a tidal capture in a dense cluster. The high binary frequency of runaway O stars that we found in our survey (69 per cent compared to 19–26 per cent in previous surveys) points to the importance of ejection from young star clusters and thus supports the competitive accretion scenario.

The formation of a massive protostar through the disk accretion of gas.

The formation of low-mass stars like our Sun can be explained by the gravitational collapse of a molecular cloud fragment into a protostellar core and the subsequent accretion of gas and dust from the surrounding interstellar medium. Theoretical considerations suggest that the radiation pressure from the protostar on the in-falling material may prevent the formation of stars above ten solar masses through this mechanism, although some calculations have claimed that stars up to 40 solar masses can in principle be formed via accretion through a disk. Given this uncertainty and the fact that most massive stars are born in dense clusters, it was suggested that high-mass stars are the result of the runaway merging of intermediate-mass stars. Here we report observations that clearly show a massive star being born from a large rotating accretion disk. The protostar has already assembled about 20 solar masses, and the accretion process is still going on. The gas reservoir of the circumstellar disk contains at least 100 solar masses of additional gas, providing sufficient fuel for substantial further growth of the forming star.

The Stellar Population of M17

The stellar content of M17 has been investigated by multicolor photometry and spectroscopy. Various independent estimates yield a distance of 2.1 ± 0.2 kpc. The ratio of total-to-selective extinction is R = 3.9. Within a projected area of 3.6 × 3.7 pc, there are several thousand stars. About 74% of them show infrared excess suggesting the presence of dense circumstellar material; the excess frequency is higher for fainter stars. The number of spectroscopically classified exciting stars could be enlarged from 13 to 46. The two central O4 stars are both spectroscopic binaries; multiplicity of other early O-type stars could also be established, increasing the number of high-mass stars even further. Our data suggest at least two episodes of star formation: There are about 500 ZAMS sources (2 < AV < 7)—among them many spectroscopically classified OB stars and a significant fraction of lower mass sources with infrared excess (~25%) and X-ray emission (~6%). About 3350 heavily reddened sources with 10 < AV < 40) are most likely deeply embedded pre-main-sequence objects with an age of less than 5 × 105 yr. This group contains about 47% sources with infrared excess and 12% X-ray emitters. Cluster members later than about A0 have not yet reached the main sequence. In addition, a group of 647 protostellar candidates (1.5 < K − L < 6.9) has been detected in the cluster center as well as in the northern and southwestern bar. This population of accreting protostars argues in favor of ongoing star formation triggered by the central O stars in M17.

Photometric AGN reverberation mapping – an efficient tool for BLR sizes, black hole masses, and host-subtracted AGN luminosities

Photometric reverberation mapping employs a wide band pass to measure the AGN continuum variations and a suitable narrow band to trace the echo of an emission line in the broad line region (BLR). The narrow band catches both the emission line and the underlying continuum, and one needs to extract the pure emission line light curve. We performed a test on two local AGNs, PG0003+199 and Ark120, by observing well-sampled broad- (B, V) and narrow-band light curves with the robotic 15 cm telescope VYSOS-6 on Cerro Armazones, Chile. We find that, as long as the emission line contributes 50% to the band pass, the pure emission line light curve can be reconstructed from photometric monitoring data so that the time lag τ can be measured. For both objects the lags are consistent with spectroscopic reverberation results. We calculated virial black hole masses in agreement with literature values, by combining the BLR size RBLR (τ) from photometric monitoring with the velocity dispersion of a single contemporaneous spectrum. Applying the flux variation gradient method, we estimate the host galaxy contribution in the apertures used and the host-subtracted restframe 5100 A luminosity LAGN .O urLAGN differs significantly from previous estimates, placing both sources ∼50% closer to the RBLR −LAGN relation. This suggests that the scatter in the current RBLR −LAGN relation is largely caused by uncertainties in RBLR due to undersampled light curves and by uncertainties in the host-subtracted AGN luminosities inferred so far. If the scatter can be reduced, then two quasar samples matching in RBLR should also match in intrinsic LAGN, independent of redshift, thus offering the prospect of probing cosmological models. Photometric reverberation mapping opens the door to efficiently measuring hundreds of BLR sizes and host-subtracted AGN luminosities even with small telescopes, but also routinely with upcoming large survey telescopes like the LSST.

First firm spectral classification of an early-B pre-main-sequence star: B275 in M 17

The optical to near-infrared (300−2500 nm) spectrum of the candidate massive young stellar object (YSO) B275, embedded in the star-forming region M 17, has been observed with X-shooter on the ESO Very Large Telescope. The spectrum includes both photospheric absorption lines and emission features (H and Ca ii triplet emission lines, 1st and 2nd overtone CO bandhead emission), as well as an infrared excess indicating the presence of a (flaring) circumstellar disk. The strongest emission lines are double-peaked with a peak separation ranging between 70 and 105 km s −1 , and they provide information on the physical structure of the disk. The underlying photospheric spectrum is classified as B6−B7, which is significantly cooler than a previous estimate based on modeling of the spectral energy distribution. This discrepancy is solved by allowing for a larger stellar radius (i.e. a bloated star) and thus positioning the star above the main sequence. This constitutes the first firm spectral classification of an early-B pre-main-sequence (PMS) star. We discuss the position of B275 in the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram in terms of PMS evolution. Although the position is consistent with PMS tracks of heavily accreting protostars ( u +

A REMNANT DISK AROUND A YOUNG MASSIVE STAR

While the formation of low-mass stars has become a well-studied process, it is still difficult to verify a similar evolutionary sequence for massive stars. Although several young stages from massive starless cores to massive protostellar candidates with jets and outflows have been observed, massive star/disk systems whose properties can be inferred uniquely are rare. The final stage of this sequence, i.e., a newborn massive star that is still surrounded by a remnant disk, is missing. This is probably a consequence of the rapid evolution of these systems and the early destruction of the disk in the vicinity of a massive star. We report on an optically visible young massive star (IRS 15) within M17 that displays a huge IR excess. This fortunate coincidence offers the rare opportunity to investigate the star as well as its circumstellar environment in great detail. We have performed both optical and infrared photometry and spectroscopy of the stellar source; in addition, its circumstellar environment has been investigated by mid-infrared imaging. Our data suggest that IRS 15 is a star of about 26 M☉ surrounded by a huge remnant disk of about half a Jupiter mass of dust. From this, we corroborate that massive stars can form by disk accretion and conclude that also their circumstellar disks evolve like those of low-mass stars.

The Morphology of M17-UC1: A Disk Candidate Surrounding a Hypercompact H II Region*

We investigate the morphology and the evolutionary stage of the hypercompact H II region M17-UC1 using observations at infrared wavelengths and NIR radiative transfer modeling. For the first time, this region is resolved into two emission areas separated by a dark lane reminiscent of an obscuring silhouette caused by a circumstellar disk. So far, the observational data as well as model calculations suggest that M17-UC1 is surrounded by a disk of cool dust. This direct detection of a circumstellar disk candidate around a hypercompact H II region is in agreement with the expectations of the disk accretion model for high-mass star formation.

2.3 μm CO emission and absorption from young high-mass stars in M 17

We are studying the extremely young cluster of M17 to investigate the birth of high-mass stars and the initial mass function. Deep JHKL imaging and K-band spectroscopy from the VLT of 201 stars toward the cluster is presented. The majority of 104 stars show the CO band-head in absorption. Half of them emit X-rays and/or have infrared excess, indicative of very young objects. Their intrinsic IR luminosity is compatible with intermediate and high-mass pre-main sequence stars. Nine additional stars have the CO feature in emission, while sixty sources are lacking any stellar spectral feature due to veiling by circumstellar dust. We suggest that CO absorption is - as in the case of low-mass stars - also a common feature during the early evolution of stars with higher masses. According to model calculations the observed CO absorption is most likely a sign of heavily accreting protostars with mass accretion rates above 10^-5 solar masses/yr.

Modeling the NIR-silhouette massive disk candidate in M 17

Aims. The physical properties of the massive disk candidate in the star-forming region M 17 are analyzed. Methods. Making use of the rare configuration in which the gas and dust structure is seen in silhouette against the background radiation at λ = 2.2 µm, we determine the column density distribution from a high-resolution NAOS/CONICA image. The influence of scattered light on the mass determination is analyzed using 3D radiative transfer calculations. Further upper flux limits derived from observations with the Spitzer telescope at MIR wavelengths are used together with the NACO image to estimate the flux from the central object. For a range of stellar radii, stellar surface temperatures, and dust grain sizes, we apply three different models to account for the observed fluxes. The stability of the disk against self-gravitational forces is analyzed calculating the ratio of the gravitational acceleration by the central object and the disk, and the deviations from a Keplerian profile. Results. We find that the column density is consistent with a central source surrounded by a rotationally symmetric distribution of gas and dust. The extent of the symmetric disk part is about 3000 AU, with a warped point-symmetrical extension beyond that radius, and therefore larger than any circumstellar disk yet detected. The modeling yields a radial density powerlaw exponent of −1.1 indicating a flat radial density distribution, and a large e-folding scale height ratio H/R of about 0.5. The mass of the entire disk estimated from the column density is discussed depending on the assumed distance and the dust model and ranges between 0.02 and 5 M� . We conclude that unless a star is located close to the disk in the foreground, scattered light will have little influence on the mass determination. We present a Spitzer image taken at λ = 7.8 µm with the disk seen in emission and identify polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) emission on the disk surface excited by the nearby massive stars as a possible source. Our 3D radiative transfer calculations for the scattered light image of the central source through an edge-on disk indicate that the elliptical shape seen in the NACO image does not require the assumption of a binary system and that it is consistent with a single object. We derive stellar main sequence masses of several M� ,5 0M� ,o r 10M� , depending on our assumptions that the extinction of the stellar flux is dominated (i) by the outer disk, (ii) by an inner disk comparable to the disks around intermediate-mass stars, or (iii) by an inner disk with dominating hot dust emission. We find that even for a star-disk mass ratio of 1, only the outer parts of the circumstellar disk may be influenced by self-gravity effects due to the large e-folding scale height ratio.

The nearby eclipsing stellar system δ Velorum - II. First reliable orbit for the eclipsing pair

Context. The nearby multiple system δ Velorum contains a widely detached eclipsing binary and a third component. Aims. We take advantage of this system offering the opportunity to determine the set of fundamental parameters (masses, luminosities, and radii) of three coeval stars with sufficient precision to test models of stellar evolution. Methods. Extensive high-resolution spectroscopy is analyzed by the broadening function technique to provide the first spectroscopic orbit of the eclipsing pair. Simultaneous analysis of the spectroscopic data and the SMEI satellite light curve is performed to provide astrophysical parameters for the components. We use a modified Roche model assuming an eccentric orbit and asynchronous rotation. Results. The observations show that components of the eclipsing pair rotate at about two-thirds of the break-up velocity, which excludes any chemical peculiarity and results in a non-uniform surface brightness. Although the inner orbit is eccentric, no apsidal motion is seen during the SMEI photometric observations. For the inner orbit, the orbital parameters are eccentricity e = 0.290, longitude of the periastron passage ω = 109 ◦ , and inclination 89.0 ◦ .