Dwarf Carbon Stars: Chandra Constraints on Activity Induced by Mass Transfer
Abstract
Scads of main sequence stars in our galaxy have a secret history of inheriting mass from a currently-invisible companion, but among these, the dwarf carbon (dC) stars show the most obvious spectral signatures - broad molecular bands of C2 and CN. The well-studied CH, Ba II and CEMP-s giants have all likely evolved from dC stars. The nature of the dCs is now being actively probed by experiments in radial velocity variability, and by new constraints on their basic charateristics afforded e.g., by Gaia. How much mass and angular momentum did dC stars accrete from their former AGB companions? Does that accretion result in renewd activity, as seen in young stars with rapid rotation rates? We probe this question with a pilot Chandra X-ray study of 6 dC stars.
- Publication:
-
American Astronomical Society Meeting Abstracts #233
- Pub Date:
- January 2019
- Bibcode:
- 2019AAS...23341404G