The Evolution of Rapidly Rotating B Stars (review Paper)

Be stars are located in or near the main-sequence band for non-rotating stars. Although this stage of evolution is relatively well understood, there are two main effects that make it impossible to say whether all Be stars are in the same stage of evolution and, if so, what that stage is. One effect is the spread in observed magnitude and colour as a result of rotation. The other effect is that there are uncertainties in the theoretical evolutionary tracks because the amount of convective overshooting is unclear. A useful way forward may be to try to understand individual stars in as much detail as possible.