Stellar seismology - Five-minute P modes detected on Alpha Centauri
Abstract
A spectrophotometer was devised for detecting seismic disturbances in stellar sources. Based on the principle of optical resonance spectroscopy, the instrument is capable of 1/msec oscillation amplitude Doppler shift measurements. Twenty hours of data on Alpha Centauri covered the monochromatic intensity in the red wings of Na D1 and D2 lines and a 20 A passband of an interference prefilter used in a reference channel. Steps were taken to account for atmospheric interference and determine the harmonics using Fourier analysis. An 81.3 micro-Hz period was observed for a 2.3-3.8 mHz periodicity in the power spectrum, a result that is similar to a period detected in the Sun, thereby indicating that a 5 min p-mode may also be occurring in Alpha Centauri.
- Publication:
-
The Messenger
- Pub Date:
- June 1984
- Bibcode:
- 1984Msngr..36...20F
- Keywords:
-
- Centaurus Constellation;
- Seismology;
- Stellar Oscillations;
- Stellar Spectrophotometry;
- Doppler Effect;
- Fourier Analysis;
- Power Spectra;
- Solar Oscillations;
- Vibration Mode;
- Astronomy