Evidence for spots on hot stars suggests major revision of stellar physics

Abstract

It has long been thought that starspots are not present in the A and B stars because magnetic fields cannot be generated in stars with radiative envelopes. Space observations show that a considerable fraction of these stars vary in light with periods consistent with the expected rotation periods. Here we show that the photometric periods are the same as the rotation periods and that starspots are the likely cause for the light variations. This discovery has wide-ranging implications and suggests that a major revision of the physics of hot stellar envelopes may be required.

6 pages, 2 figures

References in corpus (6)

• The Gaia mission
• A Technique for Extracting Highly Precise Photometry for the Two-Wheeled Kepler Mission
• Theory and evidence of global Rossby waves in upper main-sequence stars: r-mode oscillations in many Kepler stars
• Rotational modulation in TESS B stars
• Do A-type stars flare?
• 3D Stellar Reddening Map from 2MASS Photometry: An Improved Version

Cited by in corpus (18)

• The atmosphere and architecture of WASP-189 b probed by its CHEOPS phase curve
• TESS survey of rotational and pulsational variability of mercury-manganese stars
• TESS observations of Be stars: a new interpretation
• Highlights of Discoveries for $\delta$ Scuti Variable Stars From the Kepler Era
• Rotating Convective Core Excites Non-Radial Pulsations to Cause Rotational Modulations in Early-Type Stars
• Abell 30 -- A Binary Central Star Among the Born-Again Planetary Nebulae
• TESS observations of Be stars: general characteristics and the impulsive magnetic rotator model
• A Plague of Magnetic Spots Among the Hot Stars of Globular Clusters
• A spectroscopic test of the rotational modulation origin of periodic \emph{Kepler} photometric variability of A-type stars
• Flares hunting in hot subdwarf and white dwarf stars from Cycles 1-5 of TESS photometry
• Rapidly-oscillating {\it TESS} A--F main sequence stars: are the roAp stars a distinct class?
• Kepler main-sequence solar-like stars: surface rotation and magnetic-activity evolution
• Be star discs: powered by a non-zero central torque
• The Gaia-ESO survey: A spectroscopic study of the young open cluster NGC 3293
• A decade-long magnetic monitoring of Vega
• Ultraviolet Spectropolarimetry with Polstar: Clumping and Mass-loss Rate Corrections
• Empirical Relations for the Sensitivities of Solar-like Oscillations to Magnetic Perturbations
• Stable magnetic fields and changing starspots on Vega -- An ultra-deep decadal survey at Pic du Midi and OHP