Origin of Structures in Wolf-Rayet Winds: FUSE Observations of WR 135

Abstract

We report the detection with FUSE of strong, highly blue-shifted absorption features appearing in the absorption troughs of practically all major P Cygni profiles in the presumably single Wolf-Rayet star WR135. These features also appear in the shock-sensitive OVI 1032/38 Ådoublet, coincident both in time and velocity space with the rest of the lower-ionization species. Choosing between two alternative interpretations: large-scale, coherent structures vs. localized, random shocks, we favor the latter. The absolute value of velocity, as well as velocity dispersion in the shocked region, the density of the shocked gas, and the time scales of the observed variability allow us to relate the observed shocks to the incidence of numerous over-dense clumps (blobs) in the wind of a hot, massive star.

arXiv comment12 pages, 2 figures; to be published in ApJL

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Cited by in corpus (10)

• Sub-surface convection zones in hot massive stars and their observable consequences
• The Effect of Porosity on X-ray Emission Line Profiles from Hot-Star Winds
• Direct spectroscopic observations of clumping in O-star winds
• Triggering Collapse of the Presolar Dense Cloud Core and Injecting Short-Lived Radioisotopes with a Shock Wave. I. Varied Shock Speeds
• A Clumping Independent Diagnostic of Stellar Mass-loss Rates: Rapid Clump Destruction in Adiabatic Colliding Winds
• Diagnostic of the unstable envelopes of Wolf-Rayet stars
• An extensive spectroscopic time-series of three Wolf-Rayet stars. I. The lifetime of large-scale structures in the wind of WR 134
• On the origin of variable structures in the winds of hot luminous stars
• 3D MHD simulations of subsurface convection in OB stars
• Polarization Variability Arising from Clumps in the Winds of Wolf-Rayet Stars