arXiv subjects

Achim Weiss

Publications and source records attributed to Achim Weiss.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2026

Revisiting the exoplanet radius valley with host stars from SWEET-Cat

The radius valley,a deficit of planets near 2 $\mathrm{R_{\oplus}}$, was observed among exoplanets of radius $\lesssim$ 5 $\mathrm{R_{\oplus}}$ with periods $<$ 100 days by NASA's $Kepler$ mission. It separates super-Earths (rocky, $\lesssim 1.9$ $\mathrm{R_{\oplus}}$) from sub-Neptunes (volatile-rich, $\gtrsim 2$ $\mathrm{R_{\oplus}}$) and may arise from formation conditions or atmospheric loss. Disentangling these mechanisms has led to numerous studies of population-level trends, although the resulting interpretations remain sensitive to sample selection and the robustness of host-star parameters. We re-examine its existence, depth, and dependence on period, flux, stellar mass, and age. Using SWEET-Cat and MAISTEP tool, we derived stellar parameters for 1,221 main-sequence stars (1,405 planets), with effective temperatures 4400--7500 K and radii 0.62--2.75 $\mathrm{R_{\odot}}$, achieving 2\% precision in radius and mass. Planetary radii were recomputed from radius ratios, yielding 5\% median uncertainty. The valley is partially filled near 2 $\mathrm{R_{\oplus}}$ and depends on period, flux, and stellar mass, with slopes $-0.12^{+0.02}_{-0.01}$, $0.10^{+0.02}_{-0.03}$, and $0.19^{+0.09}_{-0.07}$. Sub-Neptunes show a stronger stellar mass-dependent trend than super-Earths ($0.17^{+0.04}_{-0.04}$ vs $0.11^{+0.05}_{-0.05}$). With stellar age, the super-Earth/sub-Neptune ratio rises from $0.51^{+0.11}_{-0.08}$ ($<3$ Gyr) to $0.64^{+0.11}_{-0.11}$ ($\gtrsim3$ Gyr), and the valley becomes shallower and shifts to larger radii. A 4D fit shows consistent slopes with 2D analyses and a weaker age trend ($0.07^{+0.03}_{-0.04}$). These results suggest prolonged atmospheric loss, which is consistent with a core-powered mass loss scenario and emphasize the need for improved determinations, a goal expected to be achieved by future missions like PLATO.

astro-ph.EP↗

arXiv2025

Coupling 1D stellar evolution with 3D-hydrodynamical simulations on-the-fly III: stellar evolution at different metallicities

A major weakness in one-dimensional (1D) stellar structure and evolution modeling is the simplified treatment of convection, which leads to erroneous near-surface stratification and considerable uncertainties in predicted effective temperatures and luminosities of low-mass stars. In a series of preceding works, a novel method for coupling 1D stellar structural models with a grid of 3D surface convection simulations during stellar evolution was developed, at solar metallicity. This 1D-3D coupling method slightly shifts evolutionary tracks relative to standard calculations, meanwhile providing oscillation frequencies that agree more closely with asteroseismic observations. Here we extend this method to model metal-poor and metal-rich FGK-type stars, by implementing interpolations on-the-fly across metallicity ($\rm -3 < [Fe/H] < 0.5$) for mean 3D models during stellar evolution. We demonstrate quantitatively that the fundamental stellar parameters modeled within our framework are insensitive to the mixing-length parameter. A 20% change in the mixing-length parameter results in evolutionary tracks with a temperature shift of less than 30 K, compared to a difference of over 200 K in standard evolution calculations. Our extension is validated against eclipsing binary systems with extremely precise observational constraints as well as stars in binaries with asteroseismic data. Using a fixed mixing-length parameter that merely governs convective heat transport in the near-adiabatic layers, the 1D-3D coupling method successfully reproduces most observational constraints for all target stars. Coupling 1D stellar evolution models with 3D simulations greatly reduces uncertainties associated with the choice of atmosphere boundary conditions and mixing-length parameters, hence offering a powerful tool for characterizing stars with seismic measurements and determining ages for globular clusters.

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arXiv2025

Pushing the boundaries of asteroseismic individual frequency modelling: unveiling two evolved very-low metallicity red giants

Metal-poor stars are key to understanding the first stellar generation in the Galaxy. Asteroseismic characterisation of red giants has traditionally relied on global seismic parameters, not the full spectrum of individual oscillation modes. Here, we present the first characterisation of two evolved very metal-poor stars, including the detailed mixed-mode patterns. We demonstrate that incorporating individual frequencies into grid-based modelling of red-giant stars enhances its precision, enabling detailed studies of these ancient stars and allowing us to infer the stellar properties of two $[\mathrm{Fe}/\mathrm{H}]{\sim}{-}2.5$ dex Kepler stars: KIC 4671239 and KIC 7693833. Recent developments in both observational and theoretical asteroseismology allows for detailed studies of the complex oscillation pattern of evolved giants. We employ Kepler time series and surface properties from high-resolution spectroscopic data to asteroseismically characterise the two stars using the BAyesian STellar Algorithm, BASTA. Both stars show agreement between constraints from seismic and classical observables; an overlap unrecoverable when purely considering the global seismic parameters. KIC 4671239 and KIC 7693833 were determined to have masses of $0.78^{+0.04}_{-0.03}$ and $0.83^{+0.03}_{-0.01} M_{\odot}$ with ages of $12.1^{+1.6}_{-1.5}$ and $10.3^{+0.6}_{-1.4}$ Gyr, respectively. A $\sim10$% discrepancy between observed and modelled $\nu_{\mathrm{max}}$ suggests a metallicity dependence of its scaling relation, leading to overestimated masses and incorrect age inferences for metal-poor stars. Utilising the full spectrum of individual oscillation modes, we circumvent the dependence on the asteroseismic scaling relations, providing direct constraints on the stars themselves, pushing the boundaries of state-of-the-art detailed modelling of evolved stars at metallicities far different from solar.

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arXiv2025

MAISTEP -- a new grid-based machine learning tool for inferring stellar parameters I. Ages of giant-planet host stars

Our understanding of exoplanet demographics partly depends on their corresponding host star parameters. With the majority of exoplanet-host stars having only atmospheric constraints available, robust inference of their parameters is susceptible to the approach used. The goal of this work is to develop a grid-based machine learning tool capable of determining the stellar radius, mass, and age using only atmospheric constraints and to analyse the age distribution of stars hosting giant planets. Our machine learning approach involves combining four tree-based machine learning algorithms (Random Forest, Extra Trees, Extreme Gradient Boosting, and CatBoost) trained on a grid of stellar models to infer stellar radius, mass, and age using Teff, [Fe/H], and luminosities. We perform a detailed statistical analysis to compare the inferences of our tool with those based on seismic data from the APOKASC and LEGACY samples. Finally, we apply our tool to determine the ages of stars hosting giant planets. Comparing the stellar parameter inferences from our machine learning tool with those from the APOKASC and LEGACY, we find a bias (and a scatter) of -0.5\% (5\%) and -0.2\% (2\%) in radius, 6\% (5\%) per cent and -2\% (3\%) in mass, and -9\% (16\%) and 7\% (23\%) in age, respectively. Therefore, our machine learning predictions are commensurate with seismic inferences. When applying our model to a sample of stars hosting Jupiter-mass planets, we find the average age estimates for the hosts of Hot Jupiters, Warm Jupiters, and Cold Jupiters to be 1.98, 2.98, and 3.51 Gyr, respectively. These statistical ages of the host stars confirm previous predictions - based on stellar model ages for a relatively small number of hosts, as well as on the average age-velocity dispersion relation - that stars hosting Hot Jupiters are statistically younger than those hosting Warm and Cold Jupiters.

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arXiv2025

Comparison of Three Methods for Triggering Core-collapse Supernova Explosions in Spherical Symmetry

Despite the three-dimensional nature of core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe), simulations in spherical symmetry (1D) play an important role to study large model sets for the progenitor-remnant connection, explosion properties, remnant masses, and CCSN nucleosynthesis. To trigger explosions in 1D, various numerical recipes have been applied, mostly with gross simplifications of the complex microphysics governing stellar core collapse, the formation of the compact remnant, and the mechanism of the explosion. Here we investigate the two most popular treatments, piston-driven and thermal-bomb explosions, in comparison to 1D explosions powered by a parametric neutrino engine in the P-HOTB code. For this comparison we calculate CCSNe for eight stars and evolution times up to 10,000 s, targeting the same progenitor-specific explosion energies as obtained by the neutrino-engine results. Otherwise we employ widely-used ("classic") modelling assumptions, and alternatively to the standard contraction-expansion trajectory for pistons, we also test suitably selected Lagrangian mass shells adopted from the neutrino-driven explosions as "special trajectories." Although the 56Ni production agrees within roughly a factor of two between the different explosion triggers, neither piston nor thermal bombs can reproduce the correlation of 56Ni yields and explosion energies found in neutrino-driven explosions. This shortcoming as well as the problem of massive fallback witnessed in classical piston models, which diminishes or extinguishes the ejected nickel, can be largely cured by the special trajectories. These and the choice of the explosion energies, however, make the modelling dependent on pre-existing neutrino-driven explosion results.

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arXiv2024

Uniform characterisation of an ensemble of main-sequence benchmark stars: effect of Gaia-based data on grid search models

The inference of stellar parameters (such as radius and mass) through asteroseismic forward modelling depends on the number, accuracy, and precision of seismic and atmospheric constraints. ESA's Gaia space mission is providing precise parallaxes which yield an additional constraint to be included in the model grid search. Using a handful of main-sequence benchmark stars, we perform a uniform characterisation of these stars. We assess the accuracy and precision of stellar parameters inferred from grid-based searches when a Gaia-based luminosity is combined with different stellar constraints. We also examine the precision needed for an interferometric radius (model-independent radius) to have a significant contribution towards the determination of stellar mass in the optimisation process. Our findings show that more precise stellar masses are inferred for some stars when seismic and spectroscopic constraints are complemented with a Gaia-based luminosity, with a scatter varying from 1.9 per cent to 0.8 per cent. However, the inferred stellar radii are underestimated when compared to the interferometric radii and yield a scatter of $\sim$1.9 per cent. In addition, we demonstrate that a precisely measured interferometric radius ($\lesssim$ 1 per cent) when applied in the optimisation process yields a mass with a precision $\lesssim$ 1.5 per cent. Finally, we find that when only $l=0$ mode oscillation frequencies are available, robust masses and radii are still attainable. However, this requires precise and numerous $l=0$ mode oscillations frequencies ($>$ 8) to be coupled with atmospheric constraints.

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arXiv2023

An Investigation of Non-Canonical Mixing in Red Giant Stars Using APOGEE 12C/13C Ratios Observed in Open Cluster Stars

Standard stellar evolution theory poorly predicts the surface abundances of chemical species in low-mass, red giant branch (RGB) stars. Observations show an enhancement of p-p chain and CNO cycle products in red giant envelopes, which suggests the existence of non-canonical mixing that brings interior burning products to the surface of these stars. The 12C/13C ratio is a highly sensitive abundance metric used to probe this mixing. We investigate extra RGB mixing by examining (1) how 12C/13C is altered along the RGB and (2) how 12C/13C changes for stars of varying age and mass. Our sample consists of 43 red giants spread over 15 open clusters from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey's APOGEE DR17 that have reliable 12C/13C ratios derived from their APOGEE spectra. We vetted these 12C/13C ratios and compared them as a function of evolution and age/mass to the standard mixing model of stellar evolution and to a model that includes prescriptions for RGB thermohaline mixing and stellar rotation. We find that the observations deviate from standard mixing models, implying the need for extra mixing. Additionally, some of the abundance patterns depart from the thermohaline model, and it is unclear whether these differences are due to incomplete observations, issues inherent to the model, our assumption of the cause of extra mixing, or any combination of these factors. Nevertheless, the surface abundances across our age/mass range clearly deviate from the standard model, agreeing with the notion of a universal mechanism for RGB extra mixing in low-mass stars.

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arXiv2022

Parameterisations of thermal bomb explosions for core-collapse supernovae and 56Ni production

Thermal bombs are a widely used method to artificially trigger explosions of core-collapse supernovae (CCSNe) to determine their nucleosynthesis or ejecta and remnant properties. Recently, their use in spherically symmetric (1D) hydrodynamic simulations led to the result that {56,57}Ni and 44Ti are massively underproduced compared to observational estimates for Supernova 1987A, if the explosions are slow, i.e., if the explosion mechanism of CCSNe releases the explosion energy on long timescales. It was concluded that rapid explosions are required to match observed abundances, i.e., the explosion mechanism must provide the CCSN energy nearly instantaneously on timescales of some ten to order 100 ms. This result, if valid, would disfavor the neutrino-heating mechanism, which releases the CCSN energy on timescales of seconds. Here, we demonstrate by 1D hydrodynamic simulations and nucleosynthetic post-processing that these conclusions are a consequence of disregarding the initial collapse of the stellar core in the thermal-bomb modelling before the bomb releases the explosion energy. We demonstrate that the anti-correlation of 56Ni yield and energy-injection timescale vanishes when the initial collapse is included and that it can even be reversed, i.e., more 56Ni is made by slower explosions, when the collapse proceeds to small radii similar to those where neutrino heating takes place in CCSNe. We also show that the 56Ni production in thermal-bomb explosions is sensitive to the chosen mass cut and that a fixed mass layer or fixed volume for the energy deposition cause only secondary differences. Moreover, we propose a most appropriate setup for thermal bombs.

astro-ph.HE↗

arXiv2022

Stellar evolution models with overshooting based on 3-equation non-local theories, II. Main-sequence models of A- and B-type stars

Convective overshoot mixing is a critical ingredient of stellar structure models, but is treated in most cases by ad hoc extensions of the mixing-length theory for convection. Advanced theories which are both more physical and numerically treatable are needed. Convective flows in stellar interiors are highly turbulent. This poses a number of numerical challenges for the modelling of convection in stellar interiors. We include an effective turbulence model into a 1D stellar evolution code in order to treat non-local effects within the same theory. We use a turbulent convection model which relies on the solution of second order moment equations. We implement this into a state of the art 1D stellar evolution code. To overcome a deficit in the original form of the model, we take the dissipation due to buoyancy waves in the overshooting zone into account. We compute stellar models of intermediate mass main-sequence stars between 1.5 and 8 $M_\odot$. Overshoot mixing from the convective core and modified temperature gradients within and above it emerge naturally as a solution of the turbulent convection model equations. For a given set of model parameters the overshooting extent determined from the turbulent convection model is comparable to other overshooting descriptions, the free parameters of which had been adjusted to match observations. The relative size of the mixed cores decreases with decreasing stellar mass without additional adjustments. We find that the dissipation by buoyancy waves constitutes a necessary and relevant extension of the turbulent convection model in use.

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arXiv2021

Lithium in NGC 2243 and NGC 104

Our aim was to determine the initial Li content of two clusters of similar metallicity but very different ages, the old open cluster NGC 2243 and the metal-rich globular cluster NGC 104. We compared the lithium abundances derived for a large sample of stars (from the turn-off to the red giant branch) in each cluster. For NGC 2243 the Li abundances are from the catalogues released by the Gaia-ESO Public Spectroscopic Survey, while for NGC 104 we measured the Li abundance using FLAMES/GIRAFFE spectra, which include archival data and new observations. We took the initial Li of NGC 2243 to be the lithium measured in stars on the hot side of the Li dip. We used the difference between the initial abundances and the post first dredge-up Li values of NGC 2243, and by adding this amount to the post first dredge-up stars of NGC~104 we were able to infer the initial Li of this cluster. Moreover, we compared our observational results to the predictions of theoretical stellar models for the difference between the initial Li abundance and that after the first dredge-up. The initial lithium content of NGC 2243 was found to be A(Li)_i = 2.85dex by taking the average Li abundance measured from the five hottest stars with the highest lithium abundance. This value is 1.69 dex higher than the lithium abundance derived in post first dredge-up stars. By adding this number to the lithium abundance derived in the post first dredge-up stars in NGC~104, we infer a lower limit of its initial lithium content of A(Li)_i= 2.30dex. Stellar models predict similar values. Therefore, our result offers important insights for further theoretical developments.

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arXiv2021

Modified Gravity and the Flux-weighted Gravity-Luminosity Relationship of Blue Supergiant Stars

We calculate models of stellar evolution for very massive stars and include the effects of modified gravity to investigate the influence on the physical properties of blue supergiant stars and their use as extragalactic distance indicators. With shielding and fifth force parameters in a similar range as in previous studies of Cepheid and tip of the red giant branch (TRGB) stars we find clear effects on stellar luminosity and flux-weighted gravity. The relationship between flux weighted gravity, g_F = g/Teff^4, and bolometric magnitude M_bol (FGLR), which has been used successfully for accurate distance determinations, is systematically affected. While the stellar evolution FGLRs show a systematic offset from the observed relation, we can use the differential shifts between models with Newtonian and modified gravity to estimate the influence on FGLR distance determinations. Modified gravity leads to a distance increase of 0.05 to 0.15 magnitudes in distance modulus. These change are comparable to the ones found for Cepheid stars. We compare observed FGLR and TRGB distances of nine galaxies to constrain the free parameters of modified gravity. Not accounting for systematic differences between TRGB and FGLR distances shielding parameters of 5*10^-7 and 10^-6 and fifth force parameters of 1/3 and 1 can be ruled out with about 90% confidence. Allowing for potential systematic offsets between TRGB and FGLR distances no determination is possible for a shielding parameter of 10^-6. For 5*10$^-7 a fifth force parameter of 1 can be ruled out to 92% but 1/3 is unlikely only to 60%.

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arXiv2020

Calibrating Core Overshooting Parameters With Two-dimensional Hydrodynamical Simulations

The extent of mixed regions around convective zones is one of the biggest uncertainties in stellar evolution. 1D overshooting descriptions introduce a free parameter ($f_{ov}$) that is in general not well constrained from observations. Especially in small central convective regions the value is highly uncertain due to its tight connection to the pressure scale height. Long-term multi-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations can be used to study the size of the overshooting region and the involved mixing processes. Here we show how one can calibrate an overshooting parameter by performing 2D Maestro simulations of Zero-Age-Main-Sequence stars ranging from $1.3$ to $3.5 M_\odot$. The simulations cover the convective cores of the stars and a large fraction of the surrounding radiative envelope. We follow the convective flow for at least 20 convective turnover times, while the longest simulation covers 430 turnover time scales. This allows us to study how the mixing as well as the convective boundary evolve with time, and how the resulting entrainment can be interpreted in terms of overshooting parameters. We find that increasing the overshooting parameter $f_{ov}$ beyond a certain value in the initial model of our simulations, changes the mixing behaviour completely. This result can be used to put limits on the overshooting parameter. We find $0.010 < f_{ov} < 0.017$ to be in good agreement with our simulations of a $3.5 M_\odot$ mass star. We also identify a diffusive mixing component due to internal gravity waves (IGW) that is active throughout the convectively stable layer, but likely overestimated in our simulations. Furthermore, applying our calibration method to simulations of less massive stars suggests a need for a mass-dependent overshooting description where the mixing in terms of the pressure scale height is reduced for small convective cores.

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arXiv2020

On the impact of the structural surface effect on global stellar properties and asteroseismic analyses

In a series of papers, we have recently demonstrated that it is possible to construct stellar structure models that robustly mimic the stratification of multi-dimensional radiative magneto-hydrodynamic simulations at every time-step of the computed evolution. The resulting models offer a more realistic depiction of the near-surface layers of stars with convective envelopes than parameterizations, such as mixing length theory, do. In this paper, we explore how this model improvement impacts on seismic and non-seismic properties of stellar models across the Hertzsprung-Russell diagram. We show that the improved description of the outer boundary layers alters the predicted global stellar properties at different evolutionary stages. In a hare and hound exercise, we show that this plays a key role for asteroseismic analyses, as it, for instance, often shifts the inferred stellar age estimates by more than 10 per cent. Improper boundary conditions may thus introduce systematic errors that exceed the required accuracy of the PLATO space mission. Moreover, we discuss different approximations for how to compute stellar oscillation frequencies. We demonstrate that the so-called gas $\Gamma_1$ approximation performs reasonably well for all main-sequence stars. Using a Monte Carlo approach, we show that the model frequencies of our hybrid solar models are consistent with observations within the uncertainties of the global solar parameters when using the so-called reduced $\Gamma_1$ approximation.

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arXiv2020

Weighing stars from birth to death: mass determination methods across the HRD

The mass of a star is the most fundamental parameter for its structure, evolution, and final fate. It is particularly important for any kind of stellar archaeology and characterization of exoplanets. There exists a variety of methods in astronomy to estimate or determine it. In this review we present a significant number of such methods, beginning with the most direct and model-independent approach using detached eclipsing binaries. We then move to more indirect and model-dependent methods, such as the quite commonly used isochrone or stellar track fitting. The arrival of quantitative asteroseismology has opened a completely new approach to determine stellar masses and to complement and improve the accuracy of other methods. We include methods for different evolutionary stages, from the pre-main sequence to evolved (super)giants and final remnants. For all methods uncertainties and restrictions will be discussed. We provide lists of altogether more than 200 benchmark stars with relative mass accuracies between $[0.3,2]\%$ for the covered mass range of $M\in [0.1,16]\,\msun$, $75\%$ of which are stars burning hydrogen in their core and the other $25\%$ covering all other evolved stages. We close with a recommendation how to combine various methods to arrive at a "mass-ladder" for stars.

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arXiv2020

Convective boundary mixing in low- and intermediate-mass stars I. Core properties from pressure-mode asteroseismology

Convective boundary mixing (CBM) is ubiquitous in stellar evolution. It is a necessary ingredient in the models in order to match observational constraints from clusters, binaries and single stars alike. We compute `effective overshoot' measures that reflect the extent of mixing and which can differ significantly from the input overshoot values set in the stellar evolution codes. We use constraints from pressure modes to infer the CBM properties of Kepler and CoRoT main-sequence and subgiant oscillators, as well as in two radial velocity targets (Procyon A and $α$ Cen A). Collectively these targets allow us to identify how measurement precision, stellar spectral type, and overshoot implementation impact the asteroseismic solution. With these new measures we find that the `effective overshoot' for most stars is in line with physical expectations and calibrations from binaries and clusters. However, two F-stars in the CoRoT field (HD 49933 and HD 181906) still necessitate high overshoot in the models. Due to short mode lifetimes, mode identification can be difficult in these stars. We demonstrate that an incongruence between the radial and non-radial modes drives the asteroseismic solution to extreme structures with highly-efficient CBM as an inevitable outcome. Understanding the cause of seemingly anomalous physics for such stars is vital for inferring accurate stellar parameters from TESS data with comparable timeseries length.

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arXiv2020

Short-term variability and mass loss in Be stars V. Space photometry and ground-based spectroscopy of $γ$ Cas

Context. Be stars are physically complex systems that continue to challenge theory to understand their rapid rotation, complex variability and decretion disks. $γ$ Cassiopeiae ($γ$ Cas) is one such star but is even more curious because of its unexplained hard thermal X-ray emission. Aims. We aim to examine the optical variability of $γ$ Cas and thereby to shed more light on its puzzling behaviour. Methods. Three hundred twenty-one archival H$α$ spectra from 2006 to 2017 are analysed to search for frequencies corresponding to the 203.5 day orbit of the companion. Space photometry from the SMEI satellite from 2003 to 2011 and the BRITE-Constellation of nano-satellites between 2015 and 2019 is investigated in the period range from a couple of hours to a few days. Results. The orbital period of the companion of 203.5 days is confirmed with independent measurements from the structure of the H$α$ line emission. A strong blue/red asymmetry in the amplitude distribution across the H$α$ emission line could hint at a spiral structure in the decretion disk. With the space photometry, the known frequency of 0.82 d$^{-1}$ is confirmed in data from the early 2000s. A higher frequency of 2.48 d$^{-1}$ is present in the data from 2015 to 2019 and possibly also in the early 2000s. A third frequency at 1.25 d$^{-1}$ is proposed to exist in both SMEI and BRITE data. The only explanation covering all three rapid variations seems to be nonradial pulsation. The two higher frequencies are incompatible with rotation.

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arXiv2020

Detection and characterisation of oscillating red giants: first results from the TESS satellite

Since the onset of the `space revolution' of high-precision high-cadence photometry, asteroseismology has been demonstrated as a powerful tool for informing Galactic archaeology investigations. The launch of the NASA TESS mission has enabled seismic-based inferences to go full sky -- providing a clear advantage for large ensemble studies of the different Milky Way components. Here we demonstrate its potential for investigating the Galaxy by carrying out the first asteroseismic ensemble study of red giant stars observed by TESS. We use a sample of 25 stars for which we measure their global asteroseimic observables and estimate their fundamental stellar properties, such as radius, mass, and age. Significant improvements are seen in the uncertainties of our estimates when combining seismic observables from TESS with astrometric measurements from the Gaia mission compared to when the seismology and astrometry are applied separately. Specifically, when combined we show that stellar radii can be determined to a precision of a few percent, masses to 5-10% and ages to the 20% level. This is comparable to the precision typically obtained using end-of-mission Kepler data

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arXiv2020

Age dating of an early Milky Way merger via asteroseismology of the naked-eye star $ν$ Indi

Over the course of its history, the Milky Way has ingested multiple smaller satellite galaxies. While these accreted stellar populations can be forensically identified as kinematically distinct structures within the Galaxy, it is difficult in general to precisely date the age at which any one merger occurred. Recent results have revealed a population of stars that were accreted via the collision of a dwarf galaxy, called \textit{Gaia}-Enceladus, leading to a substantial pollution of the chemical and dynamical properties of the Milky Way. Here, we identify the very bright, naked-eye star $ν$\,Indi as a probe of the age of the early in situ population of the Galaxy. We combine asteroseismic, spectroscopic, astrometric, and kinematic observations to show that this metal-poor, alpha-element-rich star was an indigenous member of the halo, and we measure its age to be $11.0 \pm 0.7$ (stat) $\pm 0.8$ (sys)$\,\rm Gyr$. The star bears hallmarks consistent with it having been kinematically heated by the \textit{Gaia}-Enceladus collision. Its age implies that the earliest the merger could have begun was 11.6 and 13.2 Gyr ago at 68 and 95% confidence, respectively. Input from computations based on hierarchical cosmological models tightens (i.e. reduces) slightly the above limits.

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