The late stellar evolutionary phases of low and intermediate-mass stars are strongly constrained by their mass-loss rates. The wind surrounding cool evolved stars frequently shows non-spherical features, thought to be due to an unseen companion orbiting the donor star. We study the morphology of the circumbinary envelope, in particular around oxygen-rich asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars. We run a grid of 70 3D hydrodynamics simulations of a progressively accelerating wind propagating in the Roche potential formed by a mass-loosing evolved star in orbit with a main sequence companion. We resolve the flow structure both in the immediate vicinity of the secondary, where bow shocks, outflows and wind-captured disks form, and up to 40 orbital separations, where spiral arms, arcs and equatorial density enhancements develop. When the companion is deeply engulfed in the wind, the lower terminal wind speeds and more progressive wind acceleration around oxygen-rich AGB stars make them more prone than carbon-rich AGB stars to display more disturbed outflows, a disk-like structure around the companion and a wind concentrated in the orbital plane. In these configurations, a large fraction of the wind is captured by the companion which leads to a significant shrinking of the orbit over the mass-loss timescale, if the donor star is at least a few times more massive than its companion. Provided the companion has a mass of at least a tenth of the mass of the donor star, it can compress the wind in the orbital plane up to large distances. Our grid of models covers a wide scope of configurations function of the dust chemical content, the terminal wind speed relative to the orbital speed, the extension of the dust condensation region around the cool evolved star and the mass ratio. It provides a frame of reference to interpret high-resolution maps of the outflows surrounding cool evolved stars.
One interpretation of the activity and magnetism of late-type stars is that these both intensify with decreasing Rossby number up to a saturation level, suggesting that stellar dynamos depend on both rotation and convective turbulence. Some studies have claimed, however, that rotation alone suffices to parametrise this scaling adequately. Here, we tackle the question of the relevance of turbulence to stellar dynamos by including evolved, post main sequence stars in the analysis of the rotation-activity relation. These stars rotate very slowly compared with main sequence stars, but exhibit simi…
Cool evolved stars are the main source of chemical enrichment of the interstellar medium. Understanding their mass loss offers a unique opportunity to study the cycle of matter. We discuss interferometric studies and their comparison to latest state-of-the-art dynamic model atmospheres. They show broad agreement for asymptotic giant branch stars. For red supergiants, however, current models cannot explain observed extensions by far, pointing to missing physical processes in their models, and uncertainties in our general understanding of mass loss. We present ongoing imaging and time-series obs…
It is thought that magnetic fields must be present in the interiors of stars to resolve certain discrepancies between theory and observation (e.g. angular momentum transport), but such fields are difficult to detect and characterise. Asteroseismology is a powerful technique for inferring the internal structures of stars by measuring their oscillation frequencies, and succeeds particularly with evolved stars, owing to their mixed modes, which are sensitive to the deep interior. The goal of this work is to present a phenomenological study of the combined effects of rotation and magnetism in evol…
We discuss and illustrate contributions that optical interferometry has made on our current understanding of cool evolved stars. We include red giant branch (RGB) stars, asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars, and red supergiants (RSGs). Studies using optical interferometry from visual to mid-infrared wavelengths have greatly increased our knowledge of their atmospheres, extended molecular shells, dust formation, and winds. These processes and the morphology of the circumstellar environment are important for the further evolution of these stars toward planetary nebulae (PNe) and core-collapse sup…
Cool, evolved stars are the main source of chemical enrichment of the interstellar medium (ISM), and understanding their mass loss and structure offers a unique opportunity to study the cycle of matter in the Universe. Pulsation, convection, and other dynamic processes in cool evolved stars create an atmosphere where molecules and dust can form, including those necessary to the formation of life (e.g.~Carbon-bearing molecules). Understanding the structure and composition of these stars is thus vital to several aspects of stellar astrophysics, ranging from ISM studies to modeling young galaxies…
A chromosphere is a universal attribute of stars of spectral type later than ~F5. Evolved (K and M) giants and supergiants (including the zeta Aurigae binaries) show extended and highly turbulent chromospheres, which develop into slow massive winds. The associated continuous mass loss has a significant impact on stellar evolution, and thence on the chemical evolution of galaxies. Yet despite the fundamental importance of those winds in astrophysics, the question of their origin(s) remains unsolved. What sources heat a chromosphere? What is the role of the chromosphere in the formation of stell…
Rotating stellar convection transports angular momentum towards the equator, generating the characteristic equatorial acceleration of the solar rotation while the radial flux of angular momentum is always inwards. New numerical box simulations for the meridional cross-correlation $\langle u_θu_ϕ\rangle $, however, reveal the angular momentum transport towards the poles for slow rotation and towards the equator for fast rotation. The explanation is that for slow rotation a negative radial gradient of the angular velocity always appears, which in combination with a so-far neglected rotation-indu…
The HST Treasury Program "Advanced Spectral Library Project: Cool Stars" was designed to collect representative, high quality ultraviolet spectra of eight evolved F-M type cool stars. The Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (STIS) echelle spectra of these objects enable investigations of a broad range of topics including stellar and interstellar astrophysics. This paper provides a guide to the spectra of the two evolved M-stars, the M2Iab supergiant Alpha Ori and the M3.4 giant Gamma Cru, with comparisons to the prototypical K1.5 giant Alpha Boo. It includes identifications of the significant…
A number of substellar companions to evolved cool stars have now been reported. Cool giants are distinct from their progenitor Main Sequence (MS) low-mass stars in a number of ways. First, the mass loss rates of cool giant stars are orders of magnitude greater than for the late-type MS stars. Second, on the cool side of the Linsky-Haisch "dividing line", K and M giant stars are not X-ray sources, although they do show evidence for chromospheres. As a result, cool star winds are largely neutral for those spectral types, suggesting that planetary or brown dwarf magnetospheres will not be effecti…
We have conducted a near-infrared monitoring campaign at the UK InfraRed Telescope (UKIRT), of the Local Group spiral galaxy M33 (Triangulum). In this paper, we present the dust and gas mass-loss rates by the pulsating Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars and red supergiants (RSGs) across the stellar disc of M33.
Estimation of bolometric fluxes (F_BOL) is an essential component of stellar effective temperature determination with optical and near-infrared interferometry. Reliable estimation of F_BOL simply from broad-band K-band photometry data is a useful tool in those cases were contemporaneous and/or wide-range photometry is unavailable for a detailed spectral energy distribution (SED) fit, as was demonstrated in Dyck et al. (1974). Recalibrating the intrinsic F_BOL versus observed F_2.2um relationship of that study with modern SED fitting routines, which incorporate the significantly non-blackbody, …
We present an analysis of Li abundances in low mass stars (LMS) during the Red Giant Branch (RGB) and Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stages, based on a new determination of their luminosities and evolutionary status. By applying recently suggested models for extra-mixing, induced by magnetic buoyancy, we show that both Li-rich and Li-poor stars can be accounted for. The simplest scenario implies the development of fast instabilities on the RGB, where Li is produced. When the fields increase in strength, buoyancy slows down and Li is destroyed. 3He is consumed, at variable rates. The process con…
This contribution is focused on the role of cool giants in symbiotic binaries. Especially, we pay attention to their mass-loss rates and the wind mass-transfer onto their compact accretors.
Cool luminous giants, in particular asymptotic giant branch stars, are among the most important sources of cosmic dust. Their extended dynamical atmospheres are places where grains form and initiate outflows driven by radiation pressure, leading to considerable stellar mass loss and the enrichment of the interstellar medium with newly-produced elements. This review summarizes the current understanding of dust formation and winds in such stars, sketching a system of criteria for identifying crucial types of dust grains in the range of possible condensates. Starting with an overview of the speci…
Slowly rotating magnetic massive stars develop "dynamical magnetospheres" (DM's), characterized by trapping of stellar wind outflow in closed magnetic loops, shock heating from collision of the upflow from opposite loop footpoints, and subsequent gravitational infall of radiatively cooled material. In 2D and 3D magnetohydrodynamic (MHD) simulations the interplay among these three components is spatially complex and temporally variable, making it difficult to derive observational signatures and discern their overall scaling trends.Within a simplified, steady-state analysis based on overall cons…
Massive stars briefly pass through the yellow supergiant (YSG) phase as they evolve redward across the HR diagram and expand into red supergiants (RSGs). Higher-mass stars pass through the YSG phase again as they evolve blueward after experiencing significant RSG mass loss. These post-RSG objects offer us a tantalizing glimpse into which stars end their lives as RSGs, and why. One telltale sign of a post-RSG object may be an instability to pulsations, depending on the star's interior structure. Here we report the discovery of five YSGs with pulsation periods faster than 1 day, found in a sampl…
Context: At the end of their lives AGB stars are prolific producers of dust and gas. The details of this mass-loss process are still not understood very well. Herschel PACS and SPIRE spectra offer a unique way of investigating properties of AGB stars in general and the mass-loss process in particular. Methods: The HIPE software with the latest calibration is used to process the available PACS and SPIRE spectra of 40 evolved stars. The spectra are convolved with the response curves of the PACS and SPIRE bolometers and compared to the fluxes measured in imaging data of these sources. Custom soft…
The predicted width of the upper main sequence in stellar evolution models depends on the empirical calibration of the convective overshooting parameter. Despite decades of discussions, its precise value is still unknown and further observational constraints are required to gauge it. Based on a photometric and preliminary asteroseismic analysis, we show that the mid B-type giant 18 Peg is one of the most evolved members of the rare class of slowly pulsating B-stars and, thus, bears tremendous potential to derive a tight lower limit for the width of the upper main sequence. In addition, 18 Peg …
The recent years have brought great advances in our knowledge of magnetic fields in cool giant and supergiant stars. For example, starspots have been directly imaged on the surface of an active giant star using optical interferometry, and magnetic fields have been detected in numerous slowly rotating giants and even on supergiants. Here, I review what is currently known of the magnetism in cool giant and supergiant stars, and discuss the origin of these fields and what is theoretically known about them.
Recent large-scale spectropolarimetric surveys have established that a small but significant percentage of massive stars host stable, surface dipolar magnetic fields with strengths on the order of kG. These fields channel the dense, radiatively driven stellar wind into circumstellar magnetospheres, whose density and velocity structure can be probed using ultraviolet (UV) spectroscopy of wind-sensitive resonance lines. Coupled with appropriate magnetosphere models, UV spectroscopy provides a valuable way to investigate the wind-field interaction, and can yield quantitative estimates of the wind…
Asteroseismology with the space-borne missions CoRoT and Kepler provides a powerful mean of testing the modeling of transport processes in stars. Rotational splittings are currently measured for a large number of red giant stars and can provide stringent constraints on the rotation profiles. The aim of this paper is to obtain a theoretical framework for understanding the properties of the observed rotational splittings of red giant stars with slowly rotating cores. This allows us to establish appropriate seismic diagnostics for rotation of these evolved stars. Rotational splittings for stochas…
Hot cluster Horizontal Branch (HB) stars and field subdwarf B (sdB) stars are core helium burning stars that exhibit abundance anomalies that are believed to be due to atomic diffusion. Diffusion can be effective in these stars because they are slowly rotating. In particular, the slow rotation of the hot HB stars (T_eff > 11000K), which show abundance anomalies, contrasts with the fast rotation of the cool HB stars, where the observed abundances are consistent with those of red giants belonging to the same cluster. The reason why sdB stars and hot HB stars are rotating slowly is unknown. In or…
We investigate the infrared (IR) properties of cool, evolved stars in the Small Magellanic Cloud (SMC), including the red giant branch (RGB) stars and the dust-producing red supergiant (RSG) and asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars using observations from the Spitzer Space Telescope Legacy program entitled: "Surveying the Agents of Galaxy Evolution in the Tidally-stripped, Low Metallicity SMC", or SAGE-SMC. The survey includes, for the first time, full spatial coverage of the SMC bar, wing, and tail regions at infrared (IR) wavelengths (3.6 - 160 microns). We identify evolved stars using a comb…
Cool objects glow in the infrared. The gas and solid-state species that escape the stellar gravitational attraction of evolved late-type stars in the form of a stellar wind are cool, with temperatures typically $\la$1500\,K, and can be ideally studied in the infrared. These stellar winds create huge extended circumstellar envelopes with extents approaching $10^{19}$\,cm. In these envelopes, a complex kinematical, thermodynamical and chemical interplay determines the global and local structural parameters. Unraveling the wind acceleration mechanisms and deriving the complicated structure of the…
Dynamic model atmospheres of Mira stars predict variabilities in the photospheric radius and in atmospheric molecular layers which are not yet strongly constrained by observations. Here we measure the variability of the oxygen-rich Mira star R Peg. We used K band spectro-interferometry with a spectral resolution of about 4000 obtained at four epochs between post-maximum and minimum visual phases employing the newly available GRAVITY beam combiner at the VLTI. Our observations show a continuum radius that is anti-correlated with the visual lightcurve. Uniform disc (UD) angular diameters at a ne…
An original method of estimating the projected rotational velocity, $vsini$, and the macroturbulent velocity, $v_{\rm mac}$, of evolved M giant stars is presented. It is based on the use of spectrum synthesis and multi-line analysis tools. The goal is to fit the mean line profile of observations with that of synthetic spectra. The method is applied to the red giant star RZ Ari and the results $v\sin i$ = 6.0 $\pm$ 0.5 km/s and $v_{\rm mac}$ = 2.0 $\pm$ 1.0 km/s are obtained.
Of a total of 177 cool G, K, and M giants and supergiants, we measured the Mg II h+k line emission of extended chromospheres in high-resolution (LWR) IUE spectra by using the IUE final data archive at STScI, and derived the respective stellar surface fluxes. They represent the chromospheric radiative energy losses presumably related to basal heating by the dissipation of acoustic waves, plus a highly variable contribution due to magnetic activity. Thanks to the large sample size, we find a very well defined lower limit, the basal chromospheric Mg II h+k line flux of cool giant chromospheres, a…
The existence of starspots on late-type giant stars in close binary systems, that exhibit rapid rotation due to tidal locking, has been known for more than five decades. Photometric monitoring spanning decades has allowed studying the long-term magnetic activity in these stars revealing complicated activity cycles. The development of observing and analysis techniques that has occurred during the past two decades has also enabled us to study the detailed starspot and magnetic field configurations on these active giants. In the recent years magnetic fields have also been detected on slowly rotat…
Asteroseismology of 1.0-2.0 Msun red giants by the Kepler satellite has enabled the first definitive measurements of interior rotation in both first ascent red giant branch (RGB) stars and those on the Helium burning clump. The inferred rotation rates are 10-30 days for the ~0.2Msun He degenerate cores on the RGB and 30-100 days for the He burning core in a clump star. Using the MESA code we calculate state-of-the-art stellar evolution models of low mass rotating stars from the zero-age main sequence to the cooling white dwarf (WD) stage. We include transport of angular momentum due to rotatio…
We present the first detection of a rotationally affected series consisting of 36 consecutive high-order sectoral dipole gravity modes in a slowly pulsating B (SPB) star. The results are based on the analysis of four years of virtually uninterrupted photometric data assembled with the Kepler Mission, and high-resolution spectra acquired using the HERMES spectrograph at the 1.2 meter Mercator Telescope. The spectroscopic measurements place KIC7760680 inside the SPB instability strip, near the cool edge. The photometric analysis reveals the longest unambiguous series of gravity modes of the same…
It is still being debated whether the well-known metallicity - giant planet correlation for dwarf stars is also valid for giant stars. For this reason, having precise metallicities is very important. Different methods can provide different results that lead to discrepancies in the analysis of planet hosts. To study the impact of different analyses on the metallicity scale for evolved stars, we compare different iron line lists to use in the atmospheric parameter derivation of evolved stars. Therefore, we use a sample of 71 evolved stars with planets. With these new homogeneous parameters, we r…
Cool giant and supergiant stars are among the largest and most luminous stars in the Universe and, therefore, dominate the integrated light of their host galaxies. These stars were extensively studied during last few decades, however their photometric variability and mass loss are still poorly constrained. The atmospheres of evolved stars are characterized by complex dynamics due to different interacting processes, such as convection, pulsation, formation of molecules and dust, and the development of mass loss. These dynamical processes impact the formation of spectral lines producing their as…
$ρ$ Pup is a $δ$ Scuti F2 pulsator, known to host a main radial mode as well as non-radial pulsations, with chemical peculiarities typical of evolved Am stars. We present high-precision spectropolarimetric observations of this star, obtained with ESPaDOnS at the Canada France Hawaii Telescope (CFHT) in the frame of the BRITE spectropolarimetric survey. A magnetic field is clearly detected in $ρ$ Pup, with a longitudinal field strength below 1 G. This makes $ρ$ Pup the second known magnetic $δ$ Scuti discovered, after HD 188774, and a possible cool evolved counterpart of the recently discovered…
Context. VX Sgr is a cool, evolved, and luminous red star whose stellar parameters are difficult to determine, which affects its classification. Aims. We aim to spatially resolve the photospheric extent as well as the circumstellar environment. Methods. We used interferometric observations obtained with the MATISSE instrument in the L (3 to 4 μm), M (4.5 to 5 μm), and N (8 to 13 μm) bands. We reconstructed monochromatic images using the MIRA software. We used 3D radiation-hydrodynamics (RHD) simulations carried out with CO5BOLD and a uniform disc model to estimate the apparent diameter and int…
We collected a sample of ten hitherto unidentified SPB stars with the aim of describing their pulsational properties and identifying pulsational modes. Photometric time series data from various surveys were collected and analyzed using diverse frequency search algorithms. We calculated astrophysical parameters and investigated the location of our sample stars in the \logTeff\ versus \logl\ diagram. Current pulsational models were calculated and used for the identification of pulsational modes in our sample stars. An extensive grid of stellar models along with their g-mode eigenfrequencies was …
$ξ^1$ CMa is a monoperiodically pulsating, magnetic $β$ Cep star with magnetospheric X-ray emission which, uniquely amongst magnetic stars, is clearly modulated with the star's pulsation period. The rotational period $P_{\rm rot}$ has yet to be identified, with multiple competing claims in the literature. We present an analysis of a large ESPaDOnS dataset with a 9-year baseline. The longitudinal magnetic field $\langle B_{\rm Z}\rangle$ shows a significant annual variation, suggesting that $P_{\rm rot}$ is at least on the order of decades. The possibility that the star's H$α$ emission originat…
The observed masses, radii and temperatures of 60 medium- to long-period binaries, most of which contain a cool, evolved star and a hotter less-evolved one, are compared with theoretical models which include (a) core convective overshooting, (b)mass loss, possibly driven by dynamo action as in RS CVn binaries, and (c) tidal friction, including its effect on orbital period through magnetic braking. A reasonable fit is found in about 42 cases, but in 11 other cases the primaries appear to have lost either more mass or less mass than the models predict, and in 4 others the orbit is predicted to b…
Aims. Through the ATOMIUM project, based on an ALMA large program, we aim to present a consistent view of a sample of 17 nearby cool evolved stars (Aymptotic Giant Branch and red supergiant stars). Methods. Here we present VLT/SPHERE-ZIMPOL polarimetric maps obtained in the visible of 14 out of the 17 ATOMIUM sources. They were obtained contemporaneously with the ALMA high spatial resolution data. To help interpret the polarized signal, we produced synthetic maps of light scattering by dust, through 3D radiative transfer simulations with the RADMC3D code. Results. The degree of linear polariza…
CHARA Array Observations of the Evolved Components in Symbiotic Star Systems
The Pennsylvania State University（宾夕法尼亚州立大学）；New Mexico Institute of Mining and Technology（新墨西哥矿业理工学院）；Adam Mickiewicz University（亚当·密茨凯维奇大学）；University of Michigan（密歇根大学）
Context. Investigations of abundances of carbon and nitrogen in the atmospheres of evolved stars of open clusters may provide comprehensive information on chemical composition changes caused by stellar evolution. Aims. Our main aim is to increase the number of open clusters with determined carbon-to nitrogen and carbon isotope ratios. Methods. High-resolution spectra were analysed using a differential model atmosphere method. Abundances of carbon were derived using the C_2 Swan (0,1) band head at 5635.5 Å (FEROS spectra) and the C_2 Swan (1,0) band head at 4737 Å (UVES spectra). The wavelength…
Type Ia supernovae are thought to occur as a white dwarf made of carbon and oxygen accretes sufficient mass to trigger a thermonuclear explosion$^{1}$. The accretion could occur slowly from an unevolved (main-sequence) or evolved (subgiant or giant) star$^{2,3}$, that being dubbed the single-degenerate channel, or rapidly as it breaks up a smaller orbiting white dwarf (the double- degenerate channel)$^{3,4}$. Obviously, a companion will survive the explosion only in the single-degenerate channel$^{5}$. Both channels might contribute to the production of type Ia supernovae$^{6,7}$ but their rel…
Multiwavelength observations of the young massive cluster Westerlund 1 have revealed evidence for a large number of OB supergiant and Wolf-Rayet binaries. However, in most cases these findings are based on secondary binary characteristics such as hard X-ray emission and/or non-thermal radio spectra and hence provide little information on binary properties such as mass ratio and orbital period. To overcome this shortcoming we have initiated a long temporal baseline, VLT/FLAMES+GIRAFFE multi-epoch radial velocity survey that will provide the first direct constraints on these parameters. This stu…
The spectrum of the evolved B8 III giant HR 62 exhibits weak He-lines and strong Mn and P lines. HR 62 therefore resembles both a HgMn star (CP3) and a He-weak PGa star (CP4). This study is a companion project to a high resolution survey of slowly rotationg late-B type stars aiming at finding new chemically peculiar stars. We have analysed the spectra of HR 62 (B8 III) and the dwarf comparison star HR 677 (B8 V) to derive their chemical abundances. Both stars have similar effective temperatures (12500 K) and projected rotational velocities ($\sim$25 km s$^{-1}$). The medium resolution ($R$ $\s…
The basic mechanisms responsible for producing winds from cool, late-type stars are still largely unknown. We take inspiration from recent progress in understanding solar wind acceleration to develop a physically motivated model of the time-steady mass loss rates of cool main-sequence stars and evolved giants. This model follows the energy flux of magnetohydrodynamic turbulence from a subsurface convection zone to its eventual dissipation and escape through open magnetic flux tubes. We show how Alfven waves and turbulence can produce winds in either a hot corona or a cool extended chromosphere…
The evolutionary phase of B[e] stars is difficult to establish due to the uncertainties in their fundamental parameters. For instance, possible classifications for the Galactic B[e] star MWC 137 include pre-main-sequence and post-main-sequence phases, with a large range in luminosity. Our goal is to clarify the evolutionary stage of this peculiar object, and to study the CO molecular component of its circumstellar medium. To this purpose, we modeled the CO molecular bands using high-resolution K-band spectra. We find that MWC 137 is surrounded by a detached cool (T = 1900 +-100 K) and dense (N…
The late evolutionary stages of stellar evolution are a key ingredient for our understanding in many fields of astrophysics, including stellar evolution and the enrichment of the interstellar medium (ISM) via stellar yields. Already the first interferometric campaigns identified evolved stars as the primary targets because of their extended and partially optically thin atmospheres, and the brightness in the infrared. Interferometric studies spanning different wavelength ranges, from visual to mid-infrared, have greatly increased our knowledge of the complex atmospheres of these objects where d…
We present the first magnetohydrodynamic model of the stellar chromospheric heating and acceleration of the outer atmospheres of cool evolved stars, using alpha Tau as a case study. We used a 1.5D MHD code with a generalized Ohm's law that accounts for the effects of partial ionization in the stellar atmosphere to study Alfven wave dissipation and wave reflection. We have demonstrated that due to inclusion of the effects of ion-neutral collisions in magnetized weakly ionized chromospheric plasma on resistivity and the appropriate grid resolution, the numerical resistivity becomes 1-2 orders of…
The observations of global stellar oscillations of post main-sequence stars by space-based photometry missions allowed to directly determine their internal rotation. These constraints have pointed towards the existence of angular momentum transport processes unaccounted for in theoretical models. Constraining the properties of their internal rotation thus appears as the golden path to determine the physical nature of these missing dynamical processes. We wish to determine the robustness of a new approach to study the internal rotation of post main-sequence stars, using parametric rotation prof…
We have discovered a doubly eclipsing, bound, quadruple star system in the field of K2 Campaign 7. EPIC 219217635 is a stellar image with $Kp = 12.7$ that contains an eclipsing binary (`EB') with $P_A = 3.59470$ d and a second EB with $P_B = 0.61825$ d. We have obtained followup radial-velocity (`RV') spectroscopy observations, adaptive optics imaging, as well as ground-based photometric observations. From our analysis of all the observations, we derive good estimates for a number of the system parameters. We conclude that (1) both binaries are bound in a quadruple star system; (2) a linear tr…
A cluster intermediate in age between the Pleiades (150 Myr) and the Hyades (600 Myr) is needed to probe the rotational evolution, especially the transition between fast and slow rotation that occurs between the two ages. We study the rich 300 Myr-old open cluster NGC 3532 to provide constraints on angular momentum loss. Measuring the rotation periods builds on our prior work of providing spectroscopic membership information for the cluster, and it supports the chromospheric activity measurements of cluster stars that we provide in a companion paper. Using 42 d-long photometric time series obs…
In the coming years, next-generation space-based infrared observatories will significantly increase our samples of rare massive stars, representing a tremendous opportunity to leverage modern statistical tools and methods to test massive stellar evolution in entirely new environments. Such work is only possible if the observed objects can be reliably classified. Spectroscopic observations are infeasible with more distant targets, and so we wish to determine whether machine learning methods can classify massive stars using broadband infrared photometry. We find that a Support Vector Machine cla…
The massive stars that survive the phase of red supergiants (RSGs) spend the rest of their life in extremity. Their unstable atmospheres facilitate the formation and episodic ejection of shells that alter the stellar appearance and surroundings. In the present study, we revise the evolutionary state of eight hypergiants in the Magellanic Clouds, four of early-A type and four of FG type, and complement the short list of the eruptive post-RSGs termed as yellow hypergiants (YHGs). We refine the outdated temperatures and luminosities of the stars by means of high-resolution spectroscopy with FEROS…
