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Abstract The solar-type subgiantβHyi has long been studied as an old analog of the Sun. Although the rotation period has never been measured directly, it was estimated to be near 27 days. As a Southern Hemisphere target, it was not monitored by long-term stellar activity surveys, but archival International Ultraviolet Explorer data revealed a 12 yr activity cycle. Previous ground-based asteroseismology suggested that the star is slightly more massive and substantially larger and older than the Sun, so the similarity of both the rotation rate and the activity cycle period to solar values is perplexing. We use two months of precise time-series photometry from the Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite to detect solar-like oscillations inβHyi and determine the fundamental stellar properties from asteroseismic modeling. We also obtain a direct measurement of the rotation period, which was previously estimated from an ultraviolet activity–rotation relation. We then use rotational evolution modeling to predict the rotation period expected from either standard spin-down or weakened magnetic braking (WMB). We conclude that the rotation period ofβHyi is consistent with WMB and that changes in stellar structure on the subgiant branch can reinvigorate the large-scale dynamo and briefly sustain magnetic activity cycles. Our results support the existence of a “born-again” dynamo in evolved subgiants—previously suggested to explain the cycle in 94 Aqr Aa—which can best be understood within the WMB scenario. 

Abstract Our understanding of the properties and demographics of exoplanets critically relies on our ability to determine the fundamental properties of their host stars. The advent of Gaia and large spectroscopic surveys has now made it possible, in principle, to infer the properties of individual stars, including most exoplanet hosts, to very high precision. However, we show that, in practice, such analyses are limited by uncertainties in both the fundamental scale and our models of stellar evolution, even for stars similar to the Sun. For example, we show that current uncertainties on measured interferometric angular diameters and bolometric fluxes set a systematic uncertainty floor of ≈2.4% in temperature, ≈2.0% in luminosity, and ≈4.2% in radius. Comparisons between widely available model grids suggest uncertainties of order ≈5% in mass and ≈20% in age for main-sequence and subgiant stars. While the radius uncertainties are roughly constant over this range of stars, the model-dependent uncertainties are a complex function of luminosity, temperature, and metallicity. We provide open-source software for approximating these uncertainties for individual targets and discuss strategies for reducing these uncertainties in the future. 

Abstract Current spectroscopic surveys are producing large catalogs of chemical abundances for stars of all types. The yttrium-to-magnesium ratio, [Y/Mg], has emerged as a candidate age indicator for solar twins in the local stellar neighborhood. However, it is unclear whether it is a viable age diagnostic for more diverse stellar types, so we investigate [Y/Mg] as an age indicator for the FGK-type planet host stars observed by Kepler. We find that the [Y/Mg] “Clock” is most precise for solar twins, with a [Y/Mg]/age slope ofm= −0.0370 ±0.0071 dex Gyr⁻¹andσ_Age= 2.6 Gyr. We attribute the lower precision compared to literature results to nonsolar twins contaminating our solar twin sample and recommend a 1.5 Gyr systematic uncertainty for stellar ages derived with any [Y/Mg]–Age relation. We also analyzed the [Y/Mg] Clock as a function ofT_eff, $\log g$, and metallicity individually and find no strong trends, but we compute statistically significant [Y/Mg]–Age relations for subsamples defined by ranges inT_eff, $\log g$, and metallicity. Finally, we compare [Y/Mg] and rotation ages and find statistically similar trends as for isochrone ages, although we find that rotation ages perform better for GK dwarfs while isochrones perform better for FG subgiants. We conclude that the [Y/Mg] Clock is most precise for solar twins and analogs but is also a useful age diagnostic for FGK stars. 

Abstract Asteroseismology of bright stars has become increasingly important as a method to determine the fundamental properties (in particular ages) of stars. The Kepler Space Telescope initiated a revolution by detecting oscillations in more than 500 main-sequence and subgiant stars. However, most Kepler stars are faint and therefore have limited constraints from independent methods such as long-baseline interferometry. Here we present the discovery of solar-like oscillations in α Men A, a naked-eye ( V = 5.1) G7 dwarf in TESS’s southern continuous viewing zone. Using a combination of astrometry, spectroscopy, and asteroseismology, we precisely characterize the solar analog α Men A ( T eff = 5569 ± 62 K, R ⋆ = 0.960 ± 0.016 R ⊙ , M ⋆ = 0.964 ± 0.045 M ⊙ ). To characterize the fully convective M dwarf companion, we derive empirical relations to estimate mass, radius, and temperature given the absolute Gaia magnitude and metallicity, yielding M ⋆ = 0.169 ± 0.006 M ⊙ , R ⋆ = 0.19 ± 0.01 R ⊙ , and T eff = 3054 ± 44 K. Our asteroseismic age of 6.2 ± 1.4 (stat) ± 0.6 (sys) Gyr for the primary places α Men B within a small population of M dwarfs with precisely measured ages. We combined multiple ground-based spectroscopy surveys to reveal an activity cycle of P = 13.1 ± 1.1 yr for α Men A, a period similar to that observed in the Sun. We used different gyrochronology models with the asteroseismic age to estimate a rotation period of ∼30 days for the primary. Alpha Men A is now the closest ( d = 10 pc) solar analog with a precise asteroseismic age from space-based photometry, making it a prime target for next-generation direct-imaging missions searching for true Earth analogs.