arXiv subjects

C. Aerts

Publications and source records attributed to C. Aerts.

At least 73 records · Page 4Linked to original sources

arXiv2018

Detection of magnetic fields in chemically peculiar stars observed with the K2 space mission

We report the results of an observational study aimed at searching for magnetic pulsating hot stars suitable for magneto-asteroseismology. A sample of sixteen chemically peculiar stars was selected and analysed using both high-resolution spectropolarimetry with ESPaDOnS and K2 high-precision space photometry. For all stars, we derive the effective temperature, surface gravity, rotational and non-rotational line broadening from our spectropolarimetric data. High-quality K2 light curves were obtained for thirteen of the sixteen stars and revealed rotational modulation, providing accurate rotation periods. Two stars show evidence for roAp pulsations, and one star shows signatures of internal gravity waves or unresolved g-mode pulsations. We confirm the presence of a large-scale magnetic field for eleven of the studied stars, of which nine are first detections. Further, we report one marginal detection and four non-detections. Two of the stars with a non-detected magnetic field show rotational modulation due to surface abundance inhomogeneities in the K2 light curve, and we confirm that the other two are chemically peculiar. Thus, these five stars likely host a weak (undetected) large-scale magnetic field.

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arXiv2018

K2 photometry and HERMES spectroscopy of the blue supergiant rho Leo: rotational wind modulation and low-frequency waves

We present an 80-d long uninterrupted high-cadence K2 light curve of the B1Iab supergiant rho Leo (HD 91316), deduced with the method of halo photometry. This light curve reveals a dominant frequency of $f_{\rmrot}=0.0373$d$^{-1}$ and its harmonics. This dominant frequency corresponds with a rotation period of 26.8d and is subject to amplitude and phase modulation. The K2 photometry additionally reveals multiperiodic low-frequency variability ($<1.5 $d$^{-1}$) and is in full agreement with low-cadence high-resolution spectroscopy assembled during 1800 days. The spectroscopy reveals rotational modulation by a dynamic aspherical wind with an amplitude of about 20km s$^{-1}$ in the H$α$ line, as well as photospheric velocity variations of a few km s$^{-1}$ at frequencies in the range 0.2 to 0.6 d$^{-1}$ in the SiIII 4567Å line. Given the large macroturbulence needed to explain the spectral line broadening of the star, we interpret the detected photospheric velocity as due to travelling super-inertial low-degree large-scale gravity waves with dominant tangential amplitudes and discuss why $ρ$~Leo is an excellent target to study how the observed photospheric variability propagates into the wind.

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arXiv2018

The shape of convective core overshooting from gravity-mode period spacings

The evolution of stars born with a convective core is highly dependent on the efficiency and extent of near core mixing processes, which effectively increases both the core mass and main-sequence lifetime. We investigate to what extent gravity-mode period spacings in slowly pulsating B-type stars observed by the Kepler mission can be used to constrain both the shape and extent of convective core overshoot and additional mixing in the radiative envelope. We compute grids of 1D stellar structure and evolution models for two different shapes of convective core overshooting and three shapes of radiative envelope mixing. The models in these grids are compared to a set of benchmark models to evaluate their capability of mimicking the dipole prograde g-modes of the benchmark models. Through our model comparisons we find that at a central hydrogen content of Xc = 0.5, dipole prograde g-modes in the period range 0.8-3 d are capable of differentiating between step and exponential diffusive overshooting. This ability disappears towards the terminal age main-sequence at Xc = 0.1. Furthermore, the g-modes behave the same for the three different shapes of radiative envelope mixing considered. However, a constant envelope mixing requires a diffusion coefficient near the convective core five times higher than chemical mixing from internal gravity waves to obtain a surface nitrogen excess of about 0.5 dex within the main-sequence lifetime. Within estimated frequency errors of the Kepler mission, the ability of g-modes to distinguish between step and exponential diffusive overshooting depends on the evolutionary stage. Combining information from the average period spacing and observed surface abundances, notably nitrogen, could potentially be used to constrain the shape of mixing in the radiative envelope of massive stars.

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arXiv2017

Low-frequency photospheric and wind variability in the early-B supergiant HD 2905

Despite the important advances in space asteroseismology during the last decade, the early phases of evolution of stars with masses above $\sim$15 M$_{\odot}$ have been only vaguely explored up to now. Our goal is to detect, analyze and interpret variability in the early-B type supergiant HD\,2905 using long-term, ground based, high resolution spectroscopy. We gather a total of 1141 high-resolution spectra covering some 2900 days. We complement these observations with the $Hipparcos$ light curve, which includes 160 data points obtained during a time span of $\sim$1200 days. We investigate spectroscopic variability of up to 12 diagnostic lines by using the zero and first moments of the line profiles. We perform a frequency analysis of both the spectroscopic and photometric dataset. HD\,2905 is a spectroscopic variable with peak-to-peak amplitudes in the zero and first moments of the photospheric lines of up to 15\% and 30 \kms, respectively. The amplitude of the line-profile variability is correlated with the line formation depth in the photosphere and wind. All investigated lines present complex temporal behavior indicative of multi-periodic variability with timescales of a few days to several weeks. The Scargle periodograms of the {\it Hipparcos\} light curve and the first moment of purely photospheric lines reveal a low-frequency amplitude excess and a clear dominant frequency at $\sim$0.37 d$^{-1}$. In the spectroscopy, several additional frequencies are present in the range 0.1 - 0.4 d$^{-1}$. These may be associated with heat-driven gravity modes, convectively-driven gravity waves, or sub-surface convective motions. Additional frequencies are detected below 0.1 d$^{-1}$. In the particular case of H$α$, these are produced by rotational modulation of a non-spherically symmetric stellar wind.

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arXiv2017

Magneto-asteroseismology of massive magnetic pulsators

Simultaneously and coherently studying the large-scale magnetic field and the stellar pulsations of a massive star provides strong complementary diagnostics suitable for detailed stellar modelling. This hybrid method is called magneto-asteroseismology and permits the determination of the internal structure and conditions within magnetic massive pulsators, for example the effect of magnetism on non-standard mixing processes. Here, we overview this technique, its requirements, and list the currently known suitable stars to apply the method.

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arXiv2017

The interior angular momentum of core hydrogen burning stars from gravity-mode oscillations

A major uncertainty in the theory of stellar evolution is the angular momentum distribution inside stars and its change during stellar life. We compose a sample of 67 stars in the core-hydrogen burning phase with a $\log\,g$ value from high-resolution spectroscopy, as well as an asteroseismic estimate of the near-core rotation rate derived from gravity-mode oscillations detected in space photometry. This assembly includes 8 B-type stars and 59 AF-type stars, covering a mass range from 1.4 to 5\,M$_\odot$, i.e., it concerns intermediate-mass stars born with a well-developed convective core. The sample covers projected surface rotation velocities $v\sin\,i \in[9,242]\,$km\,s$^{-1}$ and core rotation rates up to $26μ$Hz, which corresponds to 50\% of the critical rotation frequency. We find deviations from rigid rotation to be moderate in the single stars of this sample. We place the near-core rotation rates in an evolutionary context and find that the core rotation must drop drastically before or during the short phase between the end of the core-hydrogen burning and the onset of core-helium burning. We compute the spin parameter, which is the ratio of twice the rotation rate to the mode frequency (also known as the inverse Rossby number), for 1682 gravity modes and find the majority (95\%) to occur in the sub-inertial regime. The ten stars with Rossby modes have spin parameters between 14 and 30, while the gravito-inertial modes cover the range from 1 to 15.

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arXiv2017

Beyond the Kepler/K2 bright limit: variability in the seven brightest members of the Pleiades

The most powerful tests of stellar models come from the brightest stars in the sky, for which complementary techniques, such as astrometry, asteroseismology, spectroscopy, and interferometry can be combined. The K2 Mission is providing a unique opportunity to obtain high-precision photometric time series for bright stars along the ecliptic. However, bright targets require a large number of pixels to capture the entirety of the stellar flux, and bandwidth restrictions limit the number and brightness of stars that can be observed. To overcome this, we have developed a new photometric technique, that we call halo photometry, to observe very bright stars using a limited number of pixels. Halo photometry is simple, fast and does not require extensive pixel allocation, and will allow us to use K2 and other photometric missions, such as TESS, to observe very bright stars for asteroseismology and to search for transiting exoplanets. We apply this method to the seven brightest stars in the Pleiades open cluster. Each star exhibits variability; six of the stars show what are most-likely slowly pulsating B-star (SPB) pulsations, with amplitudes ranging from 20 to 2000 ppm. For the star Maia, we demonstrate the utility of combining K2 photometry with spectroscopy and interferometry to show that it is not a 'Maia variable', and to establish that its variability is caused by rotational modulation of a large chemical spot on a 10 d time scale.

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arXiv2017

Magnetic characterization of the SPB/$\mathbfβ$ Cep hybrid pulsator HD 43317

Large-scale magnetic fields at the surface of massive stars do not only influence the outer-most layers of the star, but also have consequences for the deep interior, only observationally accessible through asteroseismology. We performed a detailed characterization of the dipolar magnetic field at the surface of the B3.5V star HD 43317, a SPB/$β$ Cep hybrid pulsator, by studying the rotationally modulated magnetic field of archival and new Narval spectropolarimetry. Additionally, we employed a grid-based approach to compare the Zeeman signatures with model profiles. By studying the rotational modulation of the He lines in both the Narval and HARPS spectroscopy caused by co-rotating surface abundance inhomogeneities, we updated the rotation period to $0.897673\pm0.000004$d. The inclination angle between the rotation axis and the observer's line of sight remains ill-defined, because of the low level of variability in Stokes V and deformations in the intensity profiles by stellar pulsation modes. The obliquity angle between the rotation and magnetic axes is constrained to $β\in [67,90]^{\circ}$, and the strength of the dipolar magnetic field is of the order of 1kG to 1.5kG. This magnetic field at the stellar surface is sufficiently strong to warrant a uniformly rotating radiative envelope, causing less convective core overshooting, which should be visible in future forward seismic modeling.

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arXiv2017

Gaia Data Release 1. Testing the parallaxes with local Cepheids and RR Lyrae stars

Parallaxes for 331 classical Cepheids, 31 Type II Cepheids and 364 RR Lyrae stars in common between Gaia and the Hipparcos and Tycho-2 catalogues are published in Gaia Data Release 1 (DR1) as part of the Tycho-Gaia Astrometric Solution (TGAS). In order to test these first parallax measurements of the primary standard candles of the cosmological distance ladder, that involve astrometry collected by Gaia during the initial 14 months of science operation, we compared them with literature estimates and derived new period-luminosity ($PL$), period-Wesenheit ($PW$) relations for classical and Type II Cepheids and infrared $PL$, $PL$-metallicity ($PLZ$) and optical luminosity-metallicity ($M_V$-[Fe/H]) relations for the RR Lyrae stars, with zero points based on TGAS. The new relations were computed using multi-band ($V,I,J,K_{\mathrm{s}},W_{1}$) photometry and spectroscopic metal abundances available in the literature, and applying three alternative approaches: (i) by linear least squares fitting the absolute magnitudes inferred from direct transformation of the TGAS parallaxes, (ii) by adopting astrometric-based luminosities, and (iii) using a Bayesian fitting approach. TGAS parallaxes bring a significant added value to the previous Hipparcos estimates. The relations presented in this paper represent first Gaia-calibrated relations and form a "work-in-progress" milestone report in the wait for Gaia-only parallaxes of which a first solution will become available with Gaia's Data Release 2 (DR2) in 2018.

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arXiv2017

Studying the photometric and spectroscopic variability of the magnetic hot supergiant $ζ$ Orionis Aa

Massive stars play a significant role in the chemical and dynamical evolution of galaxies. However, much of their variability, particularly during their evolved supergiant stage, is poorly understood. To understand the variability of evolved massive stars in more detail, we present a study of the O9.2Ib supergiant $ζ$ Ori Aa, the only currently confirmed supergiant to host a magnetic field. We have obtained two-color space-based BRIght Target Explorer photometry (BRITE) for $ζ$ Ori Aa during two observing campaigns, as well as simultaneous ground-based, high-resolution optical CHIRON spectroscopy. We perform a detailed frequency analysis to detect and characterize the star's periodic variability. We detect two significant, independent frequencies, their higher harmonics, and combination frequencies: the stellar rotation period $P_{\mathrm{rot}} = 6.82\pm0.18$ d, most likely related to the presence of the stable magnetic poles, and a variation with a period of $10.0\pm0.3$ d attributed to circumstellar environment, also detected in the H$α$ and several He I lines, yet absent in the purely photospheric lines. We confirm the variability with $P_{\mathrm{rot}}$/4, likely caused by surface inhomogeneities, being the possible photospheric drivers of the discrete absorption components. No stellar pulsations were detected in the data. The level of circumstellar activity clearly differs between the two BRITE observing campaigns. We demonstrate that $ζ$ Ori Aa is a highly variable star with both periodic and non-periodic variations, as well as episodic events. The rotation period we determined agrees well with the spectropolarimetric value from the literature. The changing activity level observed with BRITE could explain why the rotational modulation of the magnetic measurements was not clearly detected at all epochs.

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arXiv2017

Kepler sheds new and unprecedented light on the variability of a blue supergiant: gravity waves in the O9.5Iab star HD 188209

Stellar evolution models are most uncertain for evolved massive stars. Asteroseismology based on high-precision uninterrupted space photometry has become a new way to test the outcome of stellar evolution theory and was recently applied to a multitude of stars, but not yet to massive evolved supergiants.Our aim is to detect, analyse and interpret the photospheric and wind variability of the O9.5Iab star HD 188209 from Kepler space photometry and long-term high-resolution spectroscopy. We used Kepler scattered-light photometry obtained by the nominal mission during 1460d to deduce the photometric variability of this O-type supergiant. In addition, we assembled and analysed high-resolution high signal-to-noise spectroscopy taken with four spectrographs during some 1800d to interpret the temporal spectroscopic variability of the star. The variability of this blue supergiant derived from the scattered-light space photometry is in full in agreement with the one found in the ground-based spectroscopy. We find significant low-frequency variability that is consistently detected in all spectral lines of HD 188209. The photospheric variability propagates into the wind, where it has similar frequencies but slightly higher amplitudes. The morphology of the frequency spectra derived from the long-term photometry and spectroscopy points towards a spectrum of travelling waves with frequency values in the range expected for an evolved O-type star. Convectively-driven internal gravity waves excited in the stellar interior offer the most plausible explanation of the detected variability.

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arXiv2017

Gaia Data Release 1. Open cluster astrometry: performance, limitations, and future prospects

Context. The first Gaia Data Release contains the Tycho-Gaia Astrometric Solution (TGAS). This is a subset of about 2 million stars for which, besides the position and photometry, the proper motion and parallax are calculated using Hipparcos and Tycho-2 positions in 1991.25 as prior information. Aims. We investigate the scientific potential and limitations of the TGAS component by means of the astrometric data for open clusters. Methods. Mean cluster parallax and proper motion values are derived taking into account the error correlations within the astrometric solutions for individual stars, an estimate of the internal velocity dispersion in the cluster, and, where relevant, the effects of the depth of the cluster along the line of sight. Internal consistency of the TGAS data is assessed. Results. Values given for standard uncertainties are still inaccurate and may lead to unrealistic unit-weight standard deviations of least squares solutions for cluster parameters. Reconstructed mean cluster parallax and proper motion values are generally in very good agreement with earlier Hipparcos-based determination, although the Gaia mean parallax for the Pleiades is a significant exception. We have no current explanation for that discrepancy. Most clusters are observed to extend to nearly 15 pc from the cluster centre, and it will be up to future Gaia releases to establish whether those potential cluster-member stars are still dynamically bound to the clusters. Conclusions. The Gaia DR1 provides the means to examine open clusters far beyond their more easily visible cores, and can provide membership assessments based on proper motions and parallaxes. A combined HR diagram shows the same features as observed before using the Hipparcos data, with clearly increased luminosities for older A and F dwarfs.

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arXiv2017

Gaia Data Release 1: The variability processing & analysis and its application to the south ecliptic pole region

The ESA Gaia mission provides a unique time-domain survey for more than one billion sources brighter than G=20.7 mag. Gaia offers the unprecedented opportunity to study variability phenomena in the Universe thanks to multi-epoch G-magnitude photometry in addition to astrometry, blue and red spectro-photometry, and spectroscopy. Within the Gaia Consortium, Coordination Unit 7 has the responsibility to detect variable objects, classify them, derive characteristic parameters for specific variability classes, and provide global descriptions of variable phenomena. We describe the variability processing and analysis that we plan to apply to the successive data releases, and we present its application to the G-band photometry results of the first 14 months of Gaia operations that comprises 28 days of Ecliptic Pole Scanning Law and 13 months of Nominal Scanning Law. Out of the 694 million, all-sky, sources that have calibrated G-band photometry in this first stage of the mission, about 2.3 million sources that have at least 20 observations are located within 38 degrees from the South Ecliptic Pole. We detect about 14% of them as variable candidates, among which the automated classification identified 9347 Cepheid and RR Lyrae candidates. Additional visual inspections and selection criteria led to the publication of 3194 Cepheid and RR Lyrae stars, described in Clementini et al. (2016). Under the restrictive conditions for DR1, the completenesses of Cepheids and RR Lyrae stars are estimated at 67% and 58%, respectively, numbers that will significantly increase with subsequent Gaia data releases. Data processing within the Gaia Consortium is iterative, the quality of the data and the results being improved at each iteration. The results presented in this article show a glimpse of the exceptional harvest that is to be expected from the Gaia mission for variability phenomena. [abridged]

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arXiv2016

Signatures of internal rotation discovered in the Kepler data of five slowly pulsating B stars

Massive stars are important building blocks of the Universe, and their stellar structure and evolution models are fundamental cornerstones of various fields in modern astrophysics. The precision of these models is limited by our lack of understanding of various internal mixing processes that significantly influence the lifetime of these objects (e.g. core overshoot, chemical mixing, or the internal differential rotation). Our goal is to calibrate models by extending the sample of available seismic studies of slowly pulsating B (SPB) stars, providing input for theoretical modelling efforts that will deliver precise constraints on the parameters describing the internal mixing processes in these objects. We used spectral synthesis and disentangling techniques to derive fundamental parameters and to determine precise orbital parameters from high-resolution spectra. We employed custom masks to construct light curves from the Kepler pixel data and used standard time-series analysis tools to construct a set of significant frequencies for each target. These sets were first filtered from combination frequencies, and then screened for period spacing patterns. We detect gravity mode period series of modes of the same degree l with consecutive radial order n in four new and one revisited SPB star. These predominantly prograde dipole series (covering ~10-40 radial orders) are influenced by rotation and carry signatures of chemical mixing processes. Our spectroscopic analysis, in addition to placing each object inside the SPB instability strip and identifying KIC 4930889 as an SB2 binary, reveals that KIC 11971405 is a fast rotator that shows very weak Be signatures. Together with the observed photometric outbursts this illustrates that this Be star is a fast rotating SPB star. We hypothesise that the outbursts might be connected to its very densely compressed oscillation spectrum.

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arXiv2016

Asteroseismic versus Gaia distances: a first comparison

Context. The Kepler space mission led to a large amount of high-precision time series of solar-like oscillators. Using a Bayesian analysis that combines asteroseismic techniques and additional ground-based observations, the mass, radius, luminosity, and distance of those stars can be estimated with good precision. This has given a new impetus to the research field of galactic archeology. Aims. The first data release of the Gaia space mission contains the TGAS catalog with parallax estimates for more than 2 million stars, including many of the Kepler targets. Our goal is to make a first proper comparison of asteroseismic and astrometric parallaxes of a selection of dwarfs, subgiants, and red giants observed by Kepler for which asteroseismic distances were published. Methods. We compare asteroseismic and astrometric distances of solar-like pulsators using an appropriate statistical errors-in- variables model on a linear as well as on a logarithmic scale. Results. For a sample of 22 dwarf and subgiant solar-like oscillators, the TGAS parallaxes considerably improved the Hipparcos ones, yet the excellent agreement between asteroseismic and astrometric distances still holds. For a sample of 938 Kepler pulsating red giants, the TGAS parallaxes are much more uncertain than the asteroseismic ones, making it worthwhile to validate the former with the latter. From errors-in-variables modelling we find a significant discrepancy between the TGAS parallaxes and the asteroseismic ones. Conclusions. For the sample of dwarfs and subgiants, the comparison between astrometric and asteroseismic parallaxes does not require a revision of the stellar models on the basis of TGAS. For the sample of red giants, we identify possible causes of the discrepancy, which we will likely be able to resolve with the more precise Gaia parallaxes of the upcoming releases.

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arXiv2016

The IACOB project: III. New observational clues to understand macroturbulent broadening in massive O- and B-type stars

We aim to provide new empirical clues about macroturbulent spectral line broadening in O- and B-type stars to evaluate its physical origin. We use high-resolution spectra of ~430 stars with spectral types in the range O4-B9 (all luminosity classes). We characterize the line-broadening of adequate diagnostic metal lines using a combined FT and GOF technique. We perform a quantitative spectroscopic analysis of the whole sample using automatic tools coupled with a huge grid of FASTWIND models. We also incorporate quantitative information about line asymmetries to our observational description of the characteristics of the line-profiles, and present a comparison of the shape and type of line-profile variability found in a small sample of O stars and B supergiants with still undefined pulsational properties and B main sequence stars with variable line-profiles. We present a homogeneous and statistically significant overview of the (single snapshot) line-broadening properties of stars in the whole O and B star domain. We find empirical evidence of the existence of various types of non-rotational broadening agents acting in the realm of massive stars. Even though all of them could be quoted and quantified as a macroturbulent broadening from a practical point of view, their physical origin can be different. Contrarily to the early- to late-B dwarfs/giants, which present a mixture of cases in terms of line-profile shape and variability, the whole O-type and B supergiant domain (or, roughly speaking, stars with M_ZAMS > 15 M_sol) is fully dominated by stars with a remarkable non-rotational broadening component and very similar profiles (including type of variability). We provide some examples illustrating how this observational dataset can be used to evaluate scenarios aimed at explaining the existence of sources of non-rotational broadening in massive stars.

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arXiv2016

The interior rotation of a sample of gamma Doradus stars from ensemble modelling of their gravity mode period spacings

CONTEXT. Gamma Doradus stars (hereafter gamma Dor stars) are known to exhibit gravity- and/or gravito-intertial modes that probe the inner stellar region near the convective core boundary. The non-equidistant spacing of the pulsation periods is an observational signature of the stars' evolution and current internal structure and is heavily influenced by rotation. AIMS. We aim to constrain the near-core rotation rates for a sample of gamma Dor stars, for which we have detected period spacing patterns. METHODS. We combined the asymptotic period spacing with the traditional approximation of stellar pulsation to fit the observed period spacing patterns using chi-squared optimisation. The method was applied to the observed period spacing patterns of a sample of stars and used for ensemble modelling. RESULTS. For the majority of stars with an observed period spacing pattern we successfully determined the rotation rates and the asymptotic period spacing values, though the uncertainty margins on the latter were typically large. This also resulted directly in the identification of the modes corresponding with the detected pulsation frequencies, which for most stars were prograde dipole gravity and gravito-inertial modes. The majority of the observed retrograde modes were found to be Rossby modes. We further discuss the limitations of the method due to the neglect of the centrifugal force and the incomplete treatment of the Coriolis force. CONCLUSION. Despite its current limitations, the proposed methodology was successful to derive the rotation rates and to identify the modes from the observed period spacing patterns. It forms the first step towards detailed seismic modelling based on observed period spacing patterns of moderately to rapidly rotating gamma Dor stars.

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arXiv2016

Detection of Solar-Like Oscillations, Observational Constraints, and Stellar Models for $θ$ Cyg, the Brightest Star Observed by the {\it Kepler} Mission

$θ$ Cygni is an F3 spectral-type main-sequence star with visual magnitude V=4.48. This star was the brightest star observed by the original Kepler spacecraft mission. Short-cadence (58.8 s) photometric data using a custom aperture were obtained during Quarter 6 (June-September 2010) and subsequently in Quarters 8 and 12-17. We present analyses of the solar-like oscillations based on Q6 and Q8 data, identifying angular degree $l$ = 0, 1, and 2 oscillations in the range 1000-2700 microHz, with a large frequency separation of 83.9 plus/minus 0.4 microHz, and frequency with maximum amplitude 1829 plus/minus 54 microHz. We also present analyses of new ground-based spectroscopic observations, which, when combined with angular diameter measurements from interferometry and Hipparcos parallax, give T_eff = 6697 plus/minus 78 K, radius 1.49 plus/minus 0.03 solar radii, [Fe/H] = -0.02 plus/minus 0.06 dex, and log g = 4.23 plus/minus 0.03. We calculate stellar models matching the constraints using several methods, including using the Yale Rotating Evolution Code and the Asteroseismic Modeling Portal. The best-fit models have masses 1.35-1.39 solar masses and ages 1.0-1.6 Gyr. theta Cyg's T_eff and log g place it cooler than the red edge of the gamma Doradus instability region established from pre-Kepler ground-based observations, but just at the red edge derived from pulsation modeling. The pulsation models show gamma Dor gravity-mode pulsations driven by the convective-blocking mechanism, with frequencies of 1 to 3 cycles/day (11 to 33 microHz). However, gravity modes were not detected in the Kepler data, one signal at 1.776 cycles/day (20.56 microHz) may be attributable to a faint, possibly background, binary. Asteroseismic studies of theta Cyg and other A-F stars observed by Kepler and CoRoT, will help to improve stellar model physics and to test pulsation driving mechanisms.

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