Abstract
The Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) space telescope is collecting continuous, high-precision optical photometry of stars throughout the sky, including thousands of RR Lyrae ...stars. In this paper, we present results for an initial sample of 118 nearby RR Lyrae stars observed in TESS Sectors 1 and 2. We use differential image photometry to generate light curves and analyze their mode content and modulation properties. We combine accurate light-curve parameters from TESS with parallax and color information from the Gaia mission to create a comprehensive classification scheme. We build a clean sample, preserving RR Lyrae stars with unusual light-curve shapes, while separating other types of pulsating stars. We find that a large fraction of RR Lyrae stars exhibit various low-amplitude modes, but the distribution of those modes is markedly different from those of the bulge stars. This suggests that differences in physical parameters have an observable effect on the excitation of extra modes, potentially offering a way to uncover the origins of these signals. However, mode identification is hindered by uncertainties when identifying the true pulsation frequencies of the extra modes. We compare mode amplitude ratios in classical double-mode stars to stars with extra modes at low amplitudes and find that they separate into two distinct groups. Finally, we find a high percentage of modulated stars among the fundamental mode pulsators, but also find that at least 28% of them do not exhibit modulation, confirming that a significant fraction of stars lack the Blazhko effect.
We present the results of our survey searching for new white dwarf pulsators for observations by the TESS space telescope. We collected photometric time-series data on 14 white dwarf variable ...candidates at Konkoly Observatory, and found two new bright ZZ Ceti stars, namely EGGR 120 and WD 1310+583. We performed a Fourier analysis of the datasets. In the case of EGGR 120, which was observed on one night only, we found one significant frequency at 1332μHz with 2.3 mmag amplitude. We successfully observed WD 1310+583 on eight nights, and determined 17 significant frequencies in the whole dataset. Seven of them seem to be independent pulsation modes between 634 and 2740μHz, and we performed preliminary asteroseismic investigations of the star utilizing six of these periods. We also identified three new light variables on the fields of white dwarf candidates: an eclipsing binary, a candidate delta Scuti/beta Cephei and a candidate W UMa-type star.
Context.
We continued our ground-based observing project with the season-long observations of ZZ Ceti stars at the Konkoly Observatory. Our present targets are the newly discovered PM J22299+3024 and ...the already known LP 119–10 variables. LP 119–10 was also observed by the TESS space telescope in 120-second cadence mode.
Aims.
Our main aims are to characterise the pulsation properties of the targets and extract pulsation modes from the data for asteroseismic investigations.
Methods.
We performed a standard Fourier analysis of the daily, weekly, and entire data sets, together with test data of different combinations of weekly observations. We then performed asteroseismic fits utilising the observed and the calculated pulsation periods. For the calculations of model grids necessary for the fits, we applied the 2018 version of the White Dwarf Evolution Code.
Results.
We derived six possible pulsation modes for PM J22299+3024 and five plus two TESS pulsation frequencies for LP 119–10. We note that further pulsation frequencies may be present in the data sets, but we found their detection ambiguous, so we omitted them from the final frequency list. Our asteroseismic fits of PM J22299+3024 give 11 400 K and 0.46
M
⊙
for the effective temperature and the stellar mass, respectively. The temperature is ≈800 K higher, while the mass of the model star is exactly the same as was earlier derived by spectroscopy. Our model fits of LP 119–10 put the effective temperature in the range of 11 800−11 900 K, which is again higher than the spectroscopic 11 290 K value. Moreover, our best model solutions give
M
*
= 0.70
M
⊙
mass for this target, which is near to the spectroscopic value of 0.65
M
⊙
and likewise in the case of PM J22299+3024. The seismic distances of our best-fit model stars agree with the
Gaia
astrometric distances of PM J22299+3024 and LP 119–10 within the errors, validating our model results.
ABSTRACT The overtone and multi-mode RR Lyrae stars in the globular cluster M3 are studied using a 200 day long, , and time-series photometry obtained in 2012. 70% of the 52 overtone variables ...observed show some kind of multi-periodicity (with additional frequency at frequency ratio, Blazhko effect, double/multi-mode pulsation, and period doubling). A signal at the 0.587 frequency ratio to the fundamental-mode frequency is detected in the double-mode star, V13, which may be identified as the second radial overtone mode. If this mode identification is correct, than V13 is the first RR Lyrae star showing triple-mode pulsation of the first three radial modes. Either the Blazhko effect or the frequency (or both of these phenomena) appears in seven double-mode stars. The period ratio of RRd stars showing the Blazhko effect are anomalous. A displacement of the main frequency component at the fundamental mode with the value of modulation frequency (or its half), is detected in three Blazhko RRd stars that are parallel with the appearance of the overtone-mode pulsation. The frequency appears in RRc stars that lie at the blue side of the double-mode region and in RRd stars, raising the suspicion that its occurrence may be connected to double-mode pulsation. The changes of the Blazhko and double-mode properties of the stars are also reviewed using the recent and archive photometric data.
Context.
Thanks to photometric space missions, we have access to more and more information on the properties of white dwarf stars, especially pulsating ones. In the case of pulsators, we have the ...opportunity to get an insight into their otherwise hidden interiors by the means of asteroseismology. In addition to space-based observations, we also take advantage of the opportunity to study the pulsations of white dwarf stars from the ground, either as observations that are complementary to space-based measurements or individual observing runs on selected targets across long timescales.
Aims.
We aim to investigate long-term, single-site observations of the bright, yet scarcely studied ZZ Ceti star, GD 99. Our main goals are to determine as many eigenmodes for asteroseismology as possible and then to carry out a seismic analysis of this target.
Methods.
We performed a Fourier analysis of the light curves obtained in different epochs. After finding the normal modes of the pulsation, we ran the 2018 version of the White Dwarf Evolution Code to build model grids for the period fits. We compared the seismic distance of the best-fit model with the geometric value provided by
Gaia
measurements.
Results.
We find that GD 99 is rich in pulsation modes in the ∼200 − 1100 s period range, as we detected seven new periods. Together with the literature data, we were able to use 11 modes for the asteroseismic fits. We accepted an asteroseismic model solution with
T
eff
= 13 500 K and
M
*
= 0.80
M
⊙
as a best fit; however, this suggests a hotter and more massive star than we might have expected based on the spectroscopic values. We also estimated the rotational rate of the star to be 13.17 h, based on TESS observations.
The CoRoT satellite supplied the scientific community with a huge data base of variable stars. Among them the RR Lyrae stars have intensively been discussed in numerous papers in the last few years, ...but the latest runs have not been checked to find RR Lyrae stars up to now. Our main goal was to fill this gap and complete the CoRoT RR Lyrae sample. We found nine unstudied RR Lyrae stars. Seven of them are new discoveries. We identified three new Blazhko stars. The Blazhko effect shows non-strictly repetitive nature for all stars. The frequency spectrum of the Blazhko star CoRoT 104948132 contains second overtone frequency with the highest known period ratio. The harmonic amplitude and phase declines with the harmonic order were studied for non-Blazhko stars. We found a period dependent but similar shape amplitude decline for all stars. We discovered significant random period fluctuation for one of the two oversampled target, CM Ori. After a successful transformation of the CoRoT band parameters to the Johnson V values we estimated the basic physical properties such as mass, luminosity, metallicity. The sample can be divided into two subgroups with respect to the metallicity but otherwise the physical parameters are in the canonical range of RR Lyrae stars.
Abstract
We present the first analysis of Cepheid stars observed by the TESS space mission in Sectors 1–5. Our sample consists of 25 pulsators: ten fundamental mode, three overtone and two ...double-mode classical Cepheids, plus three type II and seven anomalous Cepheids. The targets were chosen from fields with different stellar densities, both from the Galactic field and from the Magellanic System. Three targets have 2 minutes cadence light curves available by the TESS Science Processing Operations Center: for the rest, we prepared custom light curves from the full-frame images with our own differential photometric FITSH pipeline. Our main goal was to explore the potential and the limitations of TESS concerning the various subtypes of Cepheids. We detected many low-amplitude features: weak modulation, period jitter, and timing variations due to light-time effect. We also report signs of nonradial modes and the first discovery of such a mode in an anomalous Cepheid, the overtone star XZ Cet, which we then confirmed with ground-based multicolor photometric measurements. We prepared a custom photometric solution to minimize saturation effects in the bright fundamental-mode classical Cepheid,
β
Dor with the
lightkurve
software, and we revealed strong evidence of cycle-to-cycle variations in the star. In several cases, however, fluctuations in the pulsation could not be distinguished from instrumental effects, such as contamination from nearby sources, which also varies between sectors. Finally, we discuss how precise light-curve shapes will be crucial not only for classification purposes but also to determine physical properties of these stars.
Context. HBC 722 (V2493 Cyg) is a young eruptive star in outburst since 2010. Spectroscopic evidence suggests that the source is an FU Orionis-type object, with an atypically low outburst luminosity. ...Aims. Because it was well characterized in the pre-outburst phase, HBC 722 is one of the few FUors from which we can learn about the physical changes and processes associated with the eruption, including the role of the circumstellar environment. Methods. We monitored the source in the BVRIJHKS bands from the ground and at 3.6 and 4.5 μm from space with the Spitzer Space Telescope. We analyzed the light curves and studied the evolving spectral energy distribution by fitting a series of steady accretion disk models at many epochs covering the outburst. We also analyzed the spectral properties of the source based on our new optical and infrared spectra, comparing our line inventory with those published in the literature for other epochs. We also mapped HBC 722 and its surroundings at millimeter wavelengths. Results. From the light-curve analysis we conclude that the first peak of the outburst in 2010 September was mainly due to an abrupt increase in the accretion rate in the innermost part of the system. This was followed after a few months by a long-term process, when the brightening of the source was mainly due to a gradual increase in the accretion rate and the emitting area. Our new observations show that the source is currently in a constant plateau phase. We found that the optical spectrum was similar in the first peak and following periods, but around the peak the continuum was bluer and the Hα profile changed significantly between 2012 and 2013. The source was not detected in the millimeter continuum, but we discovered a flattened molecular gas structure with a diameter of 1700 au and mass of 0.3 M⊙ centered on HBC 722. Conclusions. While the first brightness peak might be interpreted as a rapid fall of piled-up material from the inner disk onto the star, the later monotonic flux rise suggests the outward expansion of a hot component according to a previously described theory. Our study of HBC 722 demonstrates that accretion-related outbursts can occur in young stellar objects even with very low-mass disks in the late Class II phase.
We present a photometric study of 17 SNe Ia based on multi-color (Johnson-Cousins-Bessell BVRI) data taken at Piszkéstet mountain station of Konkoly Observatory, Hungary between 2016 and 2018. We ...analyze the light curves (LCs) using the publicly available LC-fitter SNooPy2 to derive distance and reddening information. The bolometric LCs are fit with a radiation-diffusion Arnett model to get constraints on the physical parameters of the ejecta: the optical opacity, the ejected mass and the initial nickel mass in particular. We also study the pre-maximum, dereddened color evolution by comparing our data with standard delayed detonation and pulsational delayed detonation models, and show that the 56Ni masses of the models that fit the colors are consistent with those derived from the bolometric LC fitting. We find similar correlations between the ejecta parameters (e.g., ejecta mass, or 56Ni mass versus decline rate) as published recently by Scalzo et al. (2019).
Abstract
Historically, FU Orionis-type stars are low-mass, pre-main-sequence stars. The members of this class experience powerful accretion outbursts and remain in an enhanced accretion state for ...decades or centuries. V1515 Cyg, a classical FUor, started brightening in the 1940s and reached its peak brightness in the late 1970s. Following a sudden decrease in brightness, it stayed in a minimum state for a few months, then started brightening for several years. We present the results of our ground-based photometric monitoring complemented with optical/near-infrared spectroscopic monitoring. Our light curves show a long-term fading with strong variability on weekly and monthly timescales. The optical spectra show P Cygni profiles and broad blueshifted absorption lines, common properties of FUors. However, V1515 Cyg lacks the P Cygni profile in the Ca
ii
8498 Å line, a part of the Ca infrared triplet, formed by an outflowing wind, suggesting that the absorbing gas in the wind is optically thin. The newly obtained near-infrared spectrum shows the strengthening of the CO bandhead and the FeH molecular band, indicating that the disk has become cooler since the last spectroscopic observation in 2015. The current luminosity of the accretion disk dropped from the peak value of 138
L
⊙
to about 45
L
⊙
, suggesting that the long-term fading is also partly caused by the dropping of the accretion rate.