arXiv subjects

Manfred Küker

Publications and source records attributed to Manfred Küker.

7 recordsLinked to original sources

arXiv2024

Characterizing the dynamical magnetosphere of the extremely slowly rotating magnetic O9.7 V star HD 54879 using rotational modulation of the H $α$ profile

The magnetic field in the O9.7 V star HD54879 has been monitored for almost a decade. Spectropolarimetric observations reveal a rather strong mean longitudinal magnetic field that varies with a period of about 7.41 yr. Observations in the H$α$ line show a variation with the same period, while the H$β$ line shows only little variation. Assuming the periodic variation to be caused by a slow rotation and a dipolar magnetic field, we find a magnetic field strength of $\ge$2 kG at the magnetic poles. With the relatively low mass loss rate of $10^{-9} M_\odot$ yr$^{-1}$, this star is a case of extremely strong magnetic confinement. Both theoretical arguments and numerical simulations indicate the presence of an extended disk of increased gas density in the equatorial plane of the magnetic field, where gas from the line-driven stellar wind is trapped. This disk is likely to be the origin of the observed H$α$ emission, which peaks together with the strongest line-of-sight magnetic field. The profile of the H$α$ line is resolved in several components and shows a remarkable variability with the rotation period.

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arXiv2023

Numerical simulation of convection in K dwarfs

We have carried out numerical simulations of the convection zone in a K dwarf of 0.7 solar masses rotating at the solar rotation period. We study the convection pattern, the differential rotation and meridional flows, and the dynamo-generated magnetic field. We find that for a star of this type, the solar rotation period represents a case of fairly rapid rotation and the differential is solar-type. A dynamo-generated large scale field appears but it is neither dipolar nor does it show a simple activity cycle.

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arXiv2021

Angular momentum transport by magnetoconvection and the magnetic modulation of the solar differential rotation

In order to explain the variance of the solar rotation law during the activity minima and maxima, the angular momentum transport by rotating magnetoconvection is simulated in a convective box penetrated by an inclined azimuthal magnetic field. Turbulence-induced kinetic and magnetic stresses { and} the Lorentz force of the large-scale magnetic background field are the basic transporters of angular momentum. Without rotation, the sign of the magnetic stresses naturally depends on the signs of the field components as positive (negative) $B_θB_ϕ$ transport the angular momentum poleward (equatorward). For fast enough rotation, however, the turbulence-originated Reynolds stresses start to dominate the transport of the angular momentum flux. The simulations show that positive ratios of the two meridional magnetic field components to the azimuthal field reduce the inward radial as well as the equatorward latitudinal transport,%by the rotating magnetoconvection which result from hydrodynamic calculations. Only for $B_θB_ϕ>0$ (generated by solar-type rotation laws with an accelerated equator) does the magnetic-influenced rotation at the solar surface prove to be flatter than the nonmagnetic profile together with the observed slight spin-down of the equator. The latter phenomenon does not appear for antisolar rotation with polar vortex as well as for rotation laws with prevailing radial shear.

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arXiv2019

Cycle times of early M dwarf stars: mean field models versus observations

Observations of early-type M stars suggest that there are two characteristic cycle times, one of order one year for fast rotators ($P_{\rm rot} < 1$ day) and another of order four years for slower rotators. For a sample of fast-rotating stars, the equator-to-pole differences of the rotation rates up to 0.03 rad d$^{-1}$ are also known from Kepler data. These findings are well-reproduced by mean field models. These models predict amplitudes of the meridional flow, from which the travel time from pole to equator at the base of the convection zone of early-type M stars can be calculated. As these travel times always exceed the observed cycle times, our findings do not support the flux transport dynamo.

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arXiv2018

Mass loss and magnetospheres of massive stars

About ten percent of all OB stars show strong, large-scale surface magnetic fields. The interaction of the magnetic field and the wind is believed to be the cause for the X-ray emission shown by these objects. We therefore run numerical simulations in two dimensions for a number the O-type stars and Wolf Rayet stars to study the interaction of the stellar magnetic fields of these stars with their winds. While weak, dipolar magnetic fields leave the wind largely unmodified and the field opens up and becomes a split monopole, the interaction between magnetic field and outflowing gas is more complex as the magnetic field remains closed in some regions and outflowing gas can be trapped. We use the Nirvana MHD code with adaptive mesh refinement to study this interaction with high numerical resolution to model cases with confinement parameters up to $10^4$.

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arXiv2015

Analysing the effects of apodizing windows on local correlation tracking using Nirvana simulations of convection

We employ different shapes of apodizing windows in the local correlation tracking (LCT) routine to retrieve horizontal velocities using numerical simulations of convection. LCT was applied on a time sequence of temperature maps generated by the Nirvana code with four different apodizing windows, namely--Gaussian, Lorentzian, trapezoidal and triangular, with varying widths. In terms of correlations (between the LCT-retrieved and simulated flow field), the triangular and the trapezoidal perform the best and worst, respectively. On segregating the intrinsic velocities in the simulations on the basis of their magnitudes, we find that for all windows, a significantly higher correlation is obtained for the intermediate and high-velocity bins and only modest or weak values in the low-velocity bins. The differences between the LCT-retrieved and simulated flow fields were determined spatially which show large residuals at or close to the boundary of granules. The extent to which the horizontal flow vectors retrieved by LCT compare with the simulated values, depends entirely on the width of the central peak of the apodizing window for a given $σ$. Even though LCT suffers from a lack of spatial content as seen in simulations, its simplicity and speed could serve as a viable first-order tool to probe horizontal flows--one that is ideal for large data sets.

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arXiv2010

Differential rotation and meridional flow of Arcturus

The spectroscopic variability of Arcturus hints at cyclic activity cycle and differential rotation. This could provide a test of current theoretical models of solar and stellar dynamos. To examine the applicability of current models of the flux transport dynamo to Arcturus, we compute a mean-field model for its internal rotation, meridional flow, and convective heat transport in the convective envelope. We then compare the conditions for dynamo action with those on the Sun. We find solar-type surface rotation with about 1/10th of the shear found on the solar surface. The rotation rate increases monotonically with depth at all latitudes throughout the whole convection zone. In the lower part of the convection zone the horizontal shear vanishes and there is a strong radial gradient. The surface meridional flow has maximum speed of 110 m/s and is directed towards the equator at high and towards the poles at low latitudes. Turbulent magnetic diffusivity is of the order $10^{15}$--$10^{16} {\rm cm^2/s}$. The conditions on Arcturus are not favorable for a circulation-dominated dynamo.

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