arXiv subjects

M. M. Hanson

Publications and source records attributed to M. M. Hanson.

28 records · Page 2Linked to original sources

arXiv2005

VLT K-band spectroscopy of massive stars deeply embedded in IRAS sources with UCHII colours

We have obtained high resolution (R = 10,000) K-band spectra of candidate young massive stars deeply embedded in (ultra-) compact HII regions (UCHIIs). In these clusters, three types of objects are identified. The first type (38 objects) consists of ``naked'' OB stars whose K-band spectra are dominated by photospheric emission. We classify the K-band spectra of the OB-type cluster members using near-infrared classification criteria. The spectral classification provides an important constraint on the distance to the embedded cluster. The ionising power of the population thus derived is compared to the information obtained from the infrared and radio flux of these sources. In most cases these two different determinations of the ionising flux are consistent, from which we conclude that we have identified the ionising star(s) in about 50% of the embedded clusters. The second type (7 objects) are point sources associated with UCHII radio emission, that exhibit nebular emission lines in the near-infrared. Six of the objects in this group produce HeI emission indicative of an embedded O-type star. These objects are more embedded than the OB stars and probably do not dominate the infrared flux as measured by IRAS. The third type (20 objects) is characterised by broad (100--200 km/s) Brgamma emission and no photospheric absorption profiles. Bik et al (2005) show that these objects are massive YSO candidates surrounded by dense circumstellar disks.

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arXiv2005

Detection of Near-IR CO Absorption Bands in R Coronae Borealis Stars

R Coronae Borealis (RCB) stars are hydrogen-deficient, carbon-rich pulsating post-AGB stars that experience massive irregular declines in brightness caused by circumstellar dust formation. The mechanism of dust formation around RCB stars is not well understood. It has been proposed that CO molecules play an important role in cooling the circumstellar gas so that dust may form. We report on a survey for CO in a sample of RCB stars. We obtained H- and K-band spectra including the first and second overtone CO bands for eight RCB stars, the RCB-like star, DY Per and the final-helium-flash star, FG Sge. The first and second overtone CO bands were detected in the cooler (T(eff)<6000 K) RCB stars, Z Umi, ES Aql, SV Sge and DY Per. The bands are not present in the warmer (T(eff)>6000 K) RCB stars, R CrB, RY Sgr, SU Tau, XX Cam. In addition, first overtone bands are seen in FG Sge, a final-helium-flash star that is in an RCB-like phase at present. Effective temperatures of the eight RCB stars range from 4000 to 7250 K. The observed photospheric CO absorption bands were compared to line-blanketed model spectra of RCB stars. As predicted by the models, the CO bands are strongest in the coolest RCB stars and not present in the warmest. No correlation was found between the presence or strength of the CO bands and dust formation activity in the stars.

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arXiv2003

Minimizing Strong Telluric Absorption in Near Infra-red Stellar Spectra

We have obtained high resolution spectra (R = 25000) of an A star over varying airmass to determine the effectiveness of telluric removal in the limit of high signal to noise. The near infra-red line HeI at 2.058 microns, which is a sensitive indicator of physical conditions in massive stars, supergiants, HII regions and YSOs, resides among pressure broadened telluric absorption from carbon dioxide and water vapor that varies both in time and with observed airmass. Our study shows that in the limit of bright stars at high resolution, accuracies of 5% are typical for high airmass observations (greater than 1.9), improving to a photon-limited accuracy of 2% at smaller airmasses (less than 1.15). We find that by using the continuum between telluric absorption lines of a ro-vibrational fan a photon-limited 1% accuracy is achievable.

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arXiv2003

A Study of Cyg OB2: Pointing the Way Towards Finding Our Galaxy's Super Star Clusters

New optical MK classification spectra have been obtained for 14 OB star candidates identified by Comeron et al. (2002) and presumed to be possible members of the Cyg OB2 cluster. All 14 candidate OB stars observed are indeed early-type stars, strongly suggesting the remaining 31 candidates identified by Comeron et al. are also early-type stars. However, as many as half of the new stars appear to be significantly older than the previously studied optical cluster, making their membership in Cyg OB2 suspect. Despite this, the recognition of Cyg OB2 being a more massive and extensive star cluster than previously realized, along with the recently recognized candidate super star cluster Westerlund 1 only a few kpc away (Clark & Negueruela 2002), reminds us that we are woefully under-informed about the massive cluster population in our Galaxy. Extrapolations of the locally derived cluster luminosity function indicate 10s to perhaps 100 of these very massive open clusters (Mcl ~ 10^4 M_sun, Mv ~ -11) should exist within our galaxy. Radio surveys will not detect these massive clusters if they are more than a few million years old. Our best hope for remedying this shortfall is through deep infrared searches and follow up near-infrared spectroscopic observations, as was used by Comeron et al. to locate candidate members of the Cyg OB2 association.

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arXiv2003

A VLT spectroscopic study of the ultracompact HII region G29.96-0.02

A high quality, medium-resolution K-band spectrum has been obtained of the ultracompact HII region G29.96-0.02 with the Very Large Telescope (VLT). The slit was positioned along the symmetry axis of the cometary shaped nebula. Besides the spectrum of the embedded ionizing O star, the long-slit observation revealed the rich emission-line spectrum produced by the ionized nebula with sub-arcsec spatial resolution. The nebular spectrum includes Br$γ$, several helium emission lines and a molecular hydrogen line. A detailed analysis is presented of the variation in strength, velocity and width of the nebular emission lines along the slit. The results are consistent with previous observations, but the much better spatial resolution allows a critical evaluation of models explaining the cometary shape of the nebula. Our observations support neither the wind bow shock model nor the champagne flow model. The measured line ratios of the nebular hydrogen and helium lines are compared to predictions from case B recombination-line theory. The results indicate an electron temperature between 6400 and 7500 K, in good agreement with other determinations and the Galactocentric distance of 4.6 kpc. The He$^{+}$/H$^{+}$ ratio is practically constant over the slit; we argue that He is singly ionized throughout the nebula. We review the various observational constraints on the effective temperature of the ionizing star and show that these are in agreement with its K-band spectral type of O5-O6V.

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arXiv2003

Identification of the ionizing source of NGC 2024

We propose the late-O, early-B star IRS2b as the ionizing source of the Flame Nebula (NGC 2024). It has been clear that such a hot, massive star must be present in this heavily obscured region, and now it has been identified. New near-infrared photometry shows that IRS2b is the most luminous and hottest star in the young star cluster embedded in the center of NGC 2024. The near-infrared observations (5' x 5') cover ~90 % of the HII region detected in radio continuum radiation, making the probability very low that the ionizing star is not present in the field. A K-band spectrum of IRS2b obtained with ISAAC on the Very Large Telescope indicates that the spectral type of IRS2b is in the range O8V - B2V. Additional arguments indicate that its spectral type is likely closer to O8 than to B2. The corresponding amount of ionizing radiation is consistent with published radio continuum and recombination line observations.

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arXiv2000

Orbital dynamics of Cygnus X-3

Orbital-phased-resolved infrared spectra of Cygnus X-3 in outburst and quiescence, including tomographic analysis, are presented. We confirm the phasing of broad HeII and NV lines in quiescence, such that maximum blue shift corresponds to the X-ray minimum at phase = 0.00 +/- 0.04. In outburst, double-peaked HeI structures show a similar phasing with two significant differences: (a) although varying in relative strength, there is continuous line emission in blue and red peaks around the orbit, and (b) an absorption component, ~1/4 of an orbit out of phase with the emission features, is discerned. Doppler tomograms of the double-peaked profiles are consistent with a disk-wind geometry, rotating at velocities of 1000 km/s. Regrettably, the tomography algorithm will produce a similar ring structure from alternative line sources if contaminated by overlying P Cygni profiles. This is certainly the case in the strong 2.0587 micron HeI line, leading to an ambiguous solution for the nature of double-peaked emission. The absorption feature, detected 1/4 of an orbit out of phase with the emission features, is consistent with an origin in the He star wind and yields for the first time a plausible radial velocity curve for the system. We directly derive the mass function of the system, 0.027 M_sun. If we assume a neutron star accretor and adopt a high orbital inclination, i > 60 degrees, we obtain a mass range for the He star of 5 M_sun < M_WR < 11 M_sun. Alternatively if the compact object is a black hole, we estimate M_BH < 10 M_sun. We discuss the implications of these masses for the nature and size of the binary system.

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arXiv1999

Infrared spectroscopic variability of Cygnus X-3 in outburst and quiescence

We present four epochs of high-resolution infrared spectroscopy of the peculiar X-ray binary Cygnus X-3. The observations cover quiescent, small flaring and outburst states of the system as defined by radio and X-ray monitoring. The underlying infrared spectrum of the source, as observed during radio and X-ray quiescence and small flaring states, is one of broad, weak HeII and NV emission. Spectral variability in this state is dominated by modulation at the 4.8 hr orbital period of the system. H-band spectra confirm the significant hydrogen depletion of the mass donor. The closest spectral match to the quiescent infrared spectrum of Cyg X-3 is an early-type WN Wolf-Rayet star. In outburst, the infrared spectrum is dramatically different, with the appearance of very strong twin-peaked HeI emission displaying both day-to-day variability and V(iolet)/R(ed) variations with orbital phase. The most likely explanation appears to be an enhanced stellar wind from the companion. Thus X-ray and radio outbursts in this system are likely to originate in mass-transfer, and not disc, instabilities, and the lengthening of the orbital period will not be smooth but will be accelerated during these outbursts. Furthermore, the appearance of these lines is suggestive of an asymmetric emitting region. We propose that the wind in Cyg X-3 is significantly flattened in the plane of the binary orbit. This may explain the observed twin-peaked HeI features as well as reconciling a massive Wolf-Rayet secondary with the relatively small optical depth to X-rays, if the disc wind is inclined at some angle to the line of sight.

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arXiv1999

The Dusty Starburst Nucleus of M33

We have thoroughly characterized the ultraviolet to near-infrared (0.15 - 2.2 micron) spectral energy distribution (SED) of the central parsec of the M33 nucleus through new infrared photometry and optical/near-infrared spectroscopy, combined with ultraviolet/optical observations from the literature and the HST archive. The SED shows evidence for a significant level of attenuation, which we model through a Monte Carlo radiative transfer code as a shell of clumpy Milky Way-type dust (tau_V ~ 2 +/- 1). The discovery of Milky Way-type dust (with a strong 2175 A bump) internal to the M33 nucleus is different from previous work which has found SMC-like dust (no bump) near starburst regions. The amount by which dust can be processed may be related to the mass and age of the starburst as well as the extent to which the dust can shield itself. Our starburst models include the effects of this dust and can fit the SED if the nucleus was the site of a moderate (~10^8 L_sun at 10 Myrs) episode of coeval star formation about 70 Myrs ago. This result is quite different from previous studies which resorted to multiple stellar populations (between 2 and 7) attenuated by either no or very little internal dust. The M33 nuclear starburst is remarkably similar to an older version (70 Myr versus 10 Myr) of the ultra-compact starburst in the center of the Milky Way.

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arXiv1998

The Spectroscopic Orbit of the Evolved Binary HD 197770

We have used spectra taken between 1992 and 1997 to derive the spectroscopic orbit of the eclipsing double-lined spectroscopic binary HD 197770. This binary has a period of 99.69 +/- 0.02 days and K amplitudes of 31.2 +/- 0.8 and 47.1 +/- 0.4 km s^{-1} for components A & B, respectively. The msin^{3}i values for A & B are 2.9 and 1.9, respectively, and are close to the actual masses due to the eclipsing nature of this binary. Both components of HD 197770 have spectral types near B2 III. This means both components are undermassive by about a factor of five and, thus, evolved stars. Additional evidence of the evolved nature of HD 197770 is found in 25, 60, and 100 micron IRAS images of HD 197770. These images show 2 apparent shells centered on HD 197770; a bright 60 micron shell with a 14' diameter and a larger (1.2 degeree diameter) bubble-like feature. At least one of the components of HD 197770 is likely to be a post-AGB star.

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