Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
Jan 2010
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2010aas...21542411k&link_type=abstract
American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #215, #424.11; Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, Vol. 42, p.332
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
Scientific paper
Due to their strong and persistent surface magnetic fields, some M dwarfs frequently produce very explosive and energetic flares in the optical and near-UV. However, observations and radiative hydrodynamic simulations of flares are in stark disagreement over the type of emission which characterizes the continuum at these wavelengths. On January 16, 2009, we observed a white light megaflare on the dM4.5e star YZ CMi as part of a long-term spectroscopic flare-monitoring campaign to constrain the spectral shape of optical flare emission. This flare was observed with simultaneous U-band photometry and 3400 A - 9000 A spectroscopy with the NMSU 1 m and ARC 3.5 m telescopes at the Apache Point Observatory. The event persisted for over 7.5 hours and at the flare peak, YZ CMi's U-band flux was 5.8 magnitudes brighter than in its quiescent state. The properties of this flare mark it as one of the most energetic and long-lasting white light flares ever to be observed on an isolated star. We present the detailed light curve properties and a time-resolved spectral analysis of the continuum and emission lines using over 160 spectra obtained during 1.3 hours of the decay phase of the flare, during which there were complex light curve variations with the U-band flux still elevated at 15-38 times the quiescent level.
AFK, SLH, & EJH acknowledge support from NSF grant AST 0807205
JPW acknowledges support from NSF Astronomy & Astrophysics Postdoctoral Fellowship AST 08-02230
Hawley Suzanne L.
Hilton Eric J.
Holtzman Jon A.
Kowalski Adam
Wisniewski John P.
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