Pulsation-Driven Mass Loss in Luminous Blue Variables

Details Pulsation-Driven Mass Loss in Luminous Blue Variables Pulsation-Driven Mass Loss in Luminous Blue Variables

Sep 2005

adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2005aspc..332..263g&link_type=abstract

The Fate of the Most Massive Stars, ASP Conference Series, Vol. 332, Proceedings of the conference held 23-28 May, 2004 in Grand

Astronomy and Astrophysics

Astronomy

4

Scientific paper

We use a nonlinear hydrodynamics code (Cox & Ostlie 1993) that includes a nonlocal time-dependent convection treatment to explore the pulsation of massive star models (Mo=50 and 80 M&sun;) (see also Guzik et al. 1997, 1998, 1999). We find that for high-mass models near the Humphreys-Davidson limit, pulsations can grow to large amplitudes, exceeding 100 km/sec in radial velocity. The pulsations are similar to those of the LBV microvariations, with periods of 5 to 50 days, and light curve variations of about 0.1 mag. Ionization of Fe-group elements is occurring in the envelope at 200,000-500,000 K, producing a convective region that transports a varying amount of the emergent luminosity during the pulsation cycle. Because convection takes some time to turn on and off during a pulsation cycle, the outgoing radiation is periodically dammed up, and the Eddington limit is exceeded locally for that part of the pulsation cycle. The impulse imparted to the outer layers causes a large abrupt increase in their outward motion, which may be the beginning of an LBV `outburst'. Rotation (not included in these models) will also lower the effective gravitational binding of the outer layers. Since the envelopes of these stars contain only ˜10-4 M&sun;, this mechanism perhaps could initiate mass loss of at most a few times x 10-4 M&sun;/yr, in agreement with observed mass loss rates of LBV stars during an outburst. It is likely that the mass loss rate would be variable, modulated by the build-up of pulsation amplitude, requiring several pulsation cycles to accelerate, and would occur in shells or clumps. We suggest that this mechanism is responsible for the winds and outbursts of `normal' LBV stars such as S Dor or AG Car (Humphreys & Davidson 1994).

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