Epsilon Sagittarii: An Extreme Rapid Rotator with a Decretion Disk

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Hauptverfasser: Bailey, Jeremy, Lewis, Fiona, Howarth, Ian D., Cotton, Daniel V., Marshall, Jonathan P., Kedziora-Chudczer, Lucyna
Format: Preprint
Veröffentlicht: 2024
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author Bailey, Jeremy
Lewis, Fiona
Howarth, Ian D.
Cotton, Daniel V.
Marshall, Jonathan P.
Kedziora-Chudczer, Lucyna
author_facet Bailey, Jeremy
Lewis, Fiona
Howarth, Ian D.
Cotton, Daniel V.
Marshall, Jonathan P.
Kedziora-Chudczer, Lucyna
contents We report high-precision multi-wavelength linear-polarization observations of the bright B9 (or A0) star $ε$ Sagittarii. The polarization shows the distinctive wavelength dependence expected for a rapidly rotating star. Analysis of the polarization data reveals an angular rotation rate $ω$ (= $Ω/Ω_{crit})$ of 0.995 or greater, the highest yet measured for a star in our galaxy. An additional wavelength-independent polarization component is attributed to electron scattering in a low-density edge-on gas disk that also produces the narrow absorption components seen in the spectrum. Several properties of the star (polarization due to a disk, occasional weak H$α$ emission, and multiple periodicities seen in space photometry) resemble those of Be stars, but the level of activity in all cases is much lower than that of typical Be stars. The stellar properties are inconsistent with single rotating-star evolutionary tracks, indicating that it is most likely a product of binary interaction. The star is an excellent candidate for observation by interferometry, optical spectropolarimetry to detect the Öhman effect, and UV polarimetry; any of which would allow its extreme rotation to be tested and its stellar properties to be refined.
format Preprint
id arxiv_https___arxiv_org_abs_2407_11352
institution arXiv
publishDate 2024
record_format arxiv
spellingShingle Epsilon Sagittarii: An Extreme Rapid Rotator with a Decretion Disk
Bailey, Jeremy
Lewis, Fiona
Howarth, Ian D.
Cotton, Daniel V.
Marshall, Jonathan P.
Kedziora-Chudczer, Lucyna
Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
We report high-precision multi-wavelength linear-polarization observations of the bright B9 (or A0) star $ε$ Sagittarii. The polarization shows the distinctive wavelength dependence expected for a rapidly rotating star. Analysis of the polarization data reveals an angular rotation rate $ω$ (= $Ω/Ω_{crit})$ of 0.995 or greater, the highest yet measured for a star in our galaxy. An additional wavelength-independent polarization component is attributed to electron scattering in a low-density edge-on gas disk that also produces the narrow absorption components seen in the spectrum. Several properties of the star (polarization due to a disk, occasional weak H$α$ emission, and multiple periodicities seen in space photometry) resemble those of Be stars, but the level of activity in all cases is much lower than that of typical Be stars. The stellar properties are inconsistent with single rotating-star evolutionary tracks, indicating that it is most likely a product of binary interaction. The star is an excellent candidate for observation by interferometry, optical spectropolarimetry to detect the Öhman effect, and UV polarimetry; any of which would allow its extreme rotation to be tested and its stellar properties to be refined.
title Epsilon Sagittarii: An Extreme Rapid Rotator with a Decretion Disk
topic Solar and Stellar Astrophysics
Instrumentation and Methods for Astrophysics
url https://arxiv.org/abs/2407.11352