Magnetic field studies of massive main sequence stars

Abstract

We report on the status of our spectropolarimetric observations of massive stars. During the last years, we have discovered magnetic fields in many objects of the upper main sequence, including Be stars, beta Cephei and Slowly Pulsating B stars, and a dozen O stars. Since the effects of those magnetic fields have been found to be substantial by recent models, we are looking into their impact on stellar rotation, pulsation, stellar winds, and chemical abundances. Accurate studies of the age, environment, and kinematic characteristics of the magnetic stars are also promising to give us new insight into the origin of the magnetic fields. Furthermore, longer time series of magnetic field measurements allow us to observe the temporal variability of the magnetic field and to deduce the stellar rotation period and the magnetic field geometry. Studies of the magnetic field in massive stars are indispensable to understand the conditions controlling the presence of those fields and their implications on the stellar physical parameters and evolution.

4 pages, 6 figures, to appear in Astronomische Nachrichten, Proceedings of the 7th Potsdam Thinkshop on "Magnetic Fields in Stars and Exoplanets"

References in corpus (7)

• Optical polarimetry toward the Pipe nebula: Revealing the importance of the magnetic field
• Magnetic field measurements of O stars with FORS1 at the VLT
• New findings on the prototypical Of?p stars
• Exploring the origin of magnetic fields in massive stars: A survey of O-type stars in clusters and in the field
• First magnetic field models for recently discovered magnetic beta Cephei and slowly pulsating B stars
• Seismic modelling of the $\beta$Cep star HD\,180642 (V1449\,Aql)
• The strong magnetic field of the large-amplitude beta Cephei pulsator V1449 Aql

Cited by in corpus (2)

• Magnetic Field Generation in Stars
• A Report on the X-ray Properties of the tau Sco Like Stars