The Kepler mission revealed a plethora of stellar variability in the light curves of many stars, some associated with magnetic activity or stellar oscillations. In this work, we analyse the periodic signal in 162 intermediate-mass stars, interpreted as Rossby modes and rotational modulation – the so-called hump and spike feature. We investigate whether the rotational modulation (spike) is due to stellar spots caused by magnetic fields or due to Overstable Convective (OsC) modes resonantly exciting g modes, with frequencies corresponding to the convective core rotation rate. Assuming that the spikes are created by magnetic spots at the stellar surface, we recover the amplitudes of the magnetic fields, which are in good agreement with theoretical predictions. Our data show a clear anticorrelation between the spike amplitudes and stellar mass and possibly a correlation with stellar age, consistent with the dynamo-generated magnetic fields theory in (sub)-surface convective layers. Investigating the harmonic behaviour, we find that for 125 stars neither of the two possible explanations can be excluded. While our results suggest that the dynamo-generated magnetic field scenario is more likely to explain the spike feature, we assess further work is needed to distinguish between the two scenarios. One method for ruling out one of the two explanations is to directly observe magnetic fields in hump and spike stars. Another would be to impose additional constraints through detailed modelling of our stars, regarding the rotation requirement in the OsC mode scenario or the presence of a convective-core (stellar age).
HD 62658 (B9p V) is a little-studied chemically peculiar star. Light curves obtained by the Kilodegree Extremely Little Telescope (KELT) and Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) show clear eclipses with a period of about 4.75 d, as well as out-of-eclipse brightness modulation with the same 4.75 d period, consistent with synchronized rotational modulation of surface chemical spots. High-resolution ESPaDOnS circular spectropolarimetry shows a clear Zeeman signature in the line profile of the primary; there is no indication of a magnetic field in the secondary. PHOEBE modelling of the light curve and radial velocities indicates that the two components have almost identical masses of about 3 M⊙. The primary’s longitudinal magnetic field 〈Bz〉 varies between about +100 and −250 G, suggesting a surface magnetic dipole strength Bd = 850 G. Bayesian analysis of the Stokes V profiles indicates Bd = 650 G for the primary and Bd < 110 G for the secondary. The primary’s line profiles are highly variable, consistent with the hypothesis that the out-of-eclipse brightness modulation is a consequence of rotational modulation of that star’s chemical spots. We also detect a residual signal in the light curve after removal of the orbital and rotational modulations, which might be pulsational in origin; this could be consistent with the weak line profile variability of the secondary. This system represents an excellent opportunity to examine the consequences of magnetic fields for stellar structure via comparison of two stars that are essentially identical with the exception that one is magnetic. The existence of such a system furthermore suggests that purely environmental explanations for the origin of fossil magnetic fields are incomplete.
more » « less- NSF-PAR ID:
- 10123139
- Publisher / Repository:
- Oxford University Press
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
- Volume:
- 490
- Issue:
- 3
- ISSN:
- 0035-8711
- Page Range / eLocation ID:
- p. 4154-4165
- Format(s):
- Medium: X
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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