Issue |
A&A
Volume 533, September 2011
|
|
---|---|---|
Article Number | A4 | |
Number of page(s) | 13 | |
Section | Stellar atmospheres | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201116949 | |
Published online | 11 August 2011 |
Variability in the CoRoT photometry of three hot O-type stars
HD 46223, HD 46150, and HD 46966⋆,⋆⋆
1
Royal Observatory of Belgium, Ringlaan 3, 1180 Brussel, Belgium
e-mail: Ronny.Blomme@oma.be
2
Institut d’Astrophysique et de Géophysique, University of Liège, Bât. B5C, Allée du 6 Août 17, 4000 Liège, Belgium
3
LESIA, UMR 8109, Observatoire de Paris, 5 place Jules Janssen, 92195 Meudon Cedex, France
4 INAF, Osservatorio Astronomico di Roma, via Frascati 33, 00040 Monteporzio Catone (Roma), Italy
5
Instituut voor Sterrenkunde, K.U. Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200D, 3001 Leuven, Belgium
6
Department of Astrophysics, IMAPP, University of Nijmegen, PO Box 9010, 6500 GL Nijmegen, The Netherlands
7
Institut d’Astrophysique Spatiale (IAS), Bâtiment 121, Université Paris-Sud, 91405 Orsay Cedex, France
Received: 24 March 2011
Accepted: 29 June 2011
Context. The detection of pulsational frequencies in stellar photometry is required as input for asteroseismological modelling. The second short run (SRa02) of the CoRoT mission has provided photometric data of unprecedented quality and time-coverage for a number of O-type stars.
Aims. We analyse the CoRoT data corresponding to three hot O-type stars, describing the properties of their light curves and search for pulsational frequencies, which we then compare to theoretical model predictions.
Methods. We determine the amplitude spectrum of the data, using the Lomb-Scargle and a multifrequency HMM-like technique. Frequencies are extracted by prewhitening, and their significance is evaluated under the assumption that the light curve is dominated by red noise. We search for harmonics, linear combinations, and regular spacings among these frequencies. We use simulations with the same time sampling as the data as a powerful tool to judge the significance of our results. From the theoretical point of view, we use the MAD non-adiabatic pulsation code to determine the expected frequencies of excited modes.
Results. A substantial number of frequencies is listed, but none can be convincingly identified as being connected to pulsations. The amplitude spectrum is dominated by red noise. Theoretical modelling shows that all three O-type stars can have excited modes, but the relation between the theoretical frequencies and the observed spectrum is not obvious.
Conclusions. The dominant red noise component in the hot O-type stars studied here clearly points to a different origin than the pulsations seen in cooler O stars. The physical cause of this red noise is unclear, but we speculate on the possibility of sub-surface convection, granulation, or stellar wind inhomogeneities being responsible.
Key words: stars: variables: general / stars: early-type / stars: oscillations / stars: individual: HD 46223 / stars: individual: HD 46150 / stars: individual: HD 46966
The CoRoT space mission was developed and is operated by the French space agency CNES, with participation of ESA’s RSSD and Science Programmes, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Germany and Spain.
Tables 2–4 are available at the CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr/viz-bin/qcat?J/A+A/533/A4
© ESO, 2011
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