A Study of Variability in the Ultraviolet Spectra of Galactic Wolf-Rayet Stars

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A Study of Variability in the Ultraviolet Spectra of Galactic Wolf-Rayet Stars A Study of Variability in the Ultraviolet Spectra of Galactic Wolf-Rayet Stars by Nicole St-Louis A Thesis Submitted to THE UNIVERSITY OF LONDON for the Degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY University College London November 1990 ProQuest Number: 10609967 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 10609967 Published by ProQuest LLC(2017). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 mes parents A bstract The results of an archival search for ultraviolet spectroscopic variability of all galactic, single-lined Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars observed more than once with IUE are presented. At least 35 % of stars are found to be variable; a large proportion considering that, in many cases, the available datasets are not ideally suited for this type of study. For each star, spectra have been co-added to form a mean spectrum with an improved signal-to-noise. The resulting spectra are presented as and atlas of high resolution IUE spectra for 28 galactic WR stars. A detailed study of the ultraviolet spectroscopic variability for the WR stars HD 192163 (WR 136) and HD 50896 (WR 6 ) has been conducted, using high resolution IUE spectra. For HD 192163, significant variability is found in the CIV A1550, Hell A1640 and NIV A1718 P Cygni profiles, over a pe­ riod of ~ 1 day. Enhanced absorption is observed at velocities exceeding the usual maximum wind outflow velocity. Weak variability is also detected in the emission components of the P Cygni profiles on a similar timescale as the variability found in the absorption components. In the case of HD 50896, varia­ tions are observed in the absorption and emission components of the N V A1240, CIV A1550, H ell A1640 and NIV A1718 P Cygni profiles as well as for a se­ ries of FeV and FeVI lines. As for HD 192163, the changes in the absorption components occur at velocities in excess of the terminal velocity of the wind. As a result of the excellent time resolution of the dataset for this star, it has been established that the absorption component variability takes place on a timescale of ~ 1 day and has a similar recurrence timescale. The variations found in the emission components have a smaller amplitude and occur on a much longer timescale, indicating that the mechanism causing the changes is not occurring on the scale of the wind but is much more localised. For both stars, the amplitude and character of the P Cygni profile variability is found to alter with epoch. In each case, it is concluded that the observed variations cannot be interpreted as effects of a compact companion orbiting in the dense stellar wind, and therefore, the ultraviolet variability does not support previous claims that these stars are WR + compact binary systems. Instead, the ultra­ violet spectroscopic variability of HD 192163 and HD 50896 are considered to be intrinsic to the WR stellar winds. Models incorporating radiatively driven 3 wind instabilities are found to, at least qualitatively, account for the variations observed at the highest outflow velocities. The line of sight towards HD 192163 and other stars in Cygnus has been in­ vestigated. High-velocity components have been detected in Hi-type and highly- ionised species towards 10 out of 13 stars in the sample and are interpreted as arising in an expanding supershell enveloping the Cyg OBI association. A study of the phase-dependent ultraviolet variability observed in high 'i resblution Copernicus and IUE spectra of the well-known WR+O spectroscopic binary 7 Velorum is presented. Changes in the P Cygni profiles of resonance and low-excitation transitions are confirmed as being partly caused by selective eclipses of the O star continuum light by the WR wind. The appearance of a high velocity wing in the absorption component of N V A1240, Si IV A1396 and CIV A1550, at phases when the O star companion is in front of the WR star, is attributed to the formation of a region of shocked gas, following the collision between the two stellar winds. A broad absorption in the eclipse spectrum between ~ 1410—1910 A is found to be due to a large number of FelV transitions and reveals that the density distribution of this ion in the wind of the WR star is asymmetric. A similar pattern of ultraviolet line profile variability is found in the binary systems V444 Cygni (WN5 4 - 05) and CV Serpentis (WC 8 4- 09). 4 Table of Contents A b stract ............................................................................................................. 3 List of Tables .................................................................................................... 9 List of Figures ...................................................................................................... 12 Acknowledgments .............................................................................................. 18 Preface ..................................................................................................................... 19 C hapter 1 Variability of Wolf-Rayet Stars 21 1 .1 Observed Intrinsic Variability .................................................................... 2 1 1 .1 .1 Optical Photometry ................................................................................... 2 1 1 .1 .2 Flux Changes at Other Wavelengths ..................................................... 24 1.1.3 Optical Spectroscopy ................................................................................. 24 1.1.4 Ultraviolet Spectroscopy ............................................................................ 26 1.1.5 Linear Polarization ..................................................................................... 28 1.2 Theory of Intrinsic Variability .................................................................. 30 1 .2 .1 Radiatively Driven Blobs .......................................................................... 30 1 .2 .2 Radiative Instabilities in Line-driven Flows ........................................ 31 1.2.3 Radial and Nonradial Pulsations ............................................................. 33 1.3 Binary Related Changes ............................................................................... 35 1.3.1 Optical Photometry ................................................................................... 35 1.3.2 Phase-dependent Photometric Changes at Other Wavelengths .. 36 1.3.3 Ultraviolet Spectroscopy ........................................................................ 38 1.3.4 Polarimetric Variations .............................................................................. 40 1.3.5 Colliding Winds ........................................................................................... 42 5 C hapter 2 An IUE Archival Survey of Variability in Wolf-Rayet Stars 45 2 .1 Introduction ................................................................................................ 45 2 .2 Observational Data ................................................................................... 48 2.3 Results .......................................................................................................... 51 2.4 Discussion and Conclusion ...................................................................... 6 6 C hapter 3 IUE Observations of Variability in the WN6 star HD 192163 69 3.1 Introduction ................................................................................................ 69 3.2 Observations ................................................................................................ 72 3.3 Comparison of the IUE Spectra ............................................................. 74 3.3.1 The SWP Spectra ................................................................................... 75 3.3.2 The LWP Spectra ................................................................................... 89 3.4 A Compact Companion .......................................................................... 91 3.4.1 The Binary Orbit ................................................................................... 91 3.4.2 The Expected X-ray Luminosity of HD 192163 93 3.4.3 The Hatchett and McCray Effect ....................................................... 97 3.5 Intrinsic Stellar Wind Variations ............................................................ 1 0 1 3.6 New IUE Observations of HD 192163 106 3.7 The Interstellar Medium in the Line of Sight Towards WR 136 and Other Stars in Cygnus ........................................................................... 113 3.7.1 Introduction ................................................................................................. 113 3.7.2 Observations ................................................................................................ 115 3.7.2.1 Nal and Call Observations ................................................................. 115 3.7.2.2 IUE Observations .................................................................................... 118 6 3.7.3 Results ........................................................................................................
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