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 Extrasolar planets and brown dwarfs around A-F type stars. IV. A candidate brown dwarf around the A9V pulsating star HD 180777We present here the detection of a brown dwarf orbiting the A9V star HD180777. The radial velocity measurements, obtained with the ELODIEechelle spectrograph at the Haute-Provence Observatory, show a mainvariation with a period of 28.4 days. Assuming a primary mass of 1.7Mȯ, the best Keplerian fit to the data leads to aminimum mass of 25 M{Jup} for the companion (the true masscould be significantly higher). We also show that, after subtraction ofthe Keplerian solution from the radial velocity measurements, theresidual radial velocities are related to phenomena intrinsic to thestar, namely pulsations with typical periods of γ Dor stars. Theseresults show that in some cases, it is possible to disentangle radialvelocity variations due to a low mass companion from variationsintrinsic to the observed star. Extrasolar planets and brown dwarfs around A-F type stars. I. Performances of radial velocity measurements, first analyses of variationsWe present the performances of a radial velocity measurement method thatwe developed for A-F type stars. These perfomances are evaluated throughan extensive set of simulations, together with actual radial velocityobservations of such stars using the ELODIE and HARPS spectrographs. Wereport the case of stars constant in radial velocity, the example of abinary detection on HD 48097 (an A2V star, with v sin{i} equal to 90 kms^-1) and a confirmation of the existence of a 3.9 M_Jup planet orbitingaround HD 120136 (Tau Boo). The instability strip problem is alsodiscussed. We show that with this method, it is in principle possible todetect planets and brown dwarfs around A-F type stars, thus allowingfurther study of the impact of stellar masses on planetary systemformation over a wider range of stellar masses than is currently done. CHARM2: An updated Catalog of High Angular Resolution MeasurementsWe present an update of the Catalog of High Angular ResolutionMeasurements (CHARM, Richichi & Percheron \cite{CHARM}, A&A,386, 492), which includes results available until July 2004. CHARM2 is acompilation of direct measurements by high angular resolution methods,as well as indirect estimates of stellar diameters. Its main goal is toprovide a reference list of sources which can be used for calibrationand verification observations with long-baseline optical and near-IRinterferometers. Single and binary stars are included, as are complexobjects from circumstellar shells to extragalactic sources. The presentupdate provides an increase of almost a factor of two over the previousedition. Additionally, it includes several corrections and improvements,as well as a cross-check with the valuable public release observationsof the ESO Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI). A total of 8231entries for 3238 unique sources are now present in CHARM2. Thisrepresents an increase of a factor of 3.4 and 2.0, respectively, overthe contents of the previous version of CHARM.The catalog is only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/431/773 Empirically Constrained Color-Temperature Relations. II. uvbyA new grid of theoretical color indices for the Strömgren uvbyphotometric system has been derived from MARCS model atmospheres and SSGsynthetic spectra for cool dwarf and giant stars having-3.0<=[Fe/H]<=+0.5 and 3000<=Teff<=8000 K. Atwarmer temperatures (i.e., 8000-2.0. To overcome thisproblem, the theoretical indices at intermediate and high metallicitieshave been corrected using a set of color calibrations based on fieldstars having well-determined distances from Hipparcos, accurateTeff estimates from the infrared flux method, andspectroscopic [Fe/H] values. In contrast with Paper I, star clustersplayed only a minor role in this analysis in that they provided asupplementary constraint on the color corrections for cool dwarf starswith Teff<=5500 K. They were mainly used to test thecolor-Teff relations and, encouragingly, isochrones thatemploy the transformations derived in this study are able to reproducethe observed CMDs (involving u-v, v-b, and b-y colors) for a number ofopen and globular clusters (including M67, the Hyades, and 47 Tuc)rather well. Moreover, our interpretations of such data are verysimilar, if not identical, with those given in Paper I from aconsideration of BV(RI)C observations for the sameclusters-which provides a compelling argument in support of thecolor-Teff relations that are reported in both studies. Inthe present investigation, we have also analyzed the observedStrömgren photometry for the classic Population II subdwarfs,compared our final'' (b-y)-Teff relationship with thosederived empirically in a number of recent studies and examined in somedetail the dependence of the m1 index on [Fe/H].Based, in part, on observations made with the Nordic Optical Telescope,operated jointly on the island of La Palma by Denmark, Finland, Iceland,Norway, and Sweden, in the Spanish Observatorio del Roque de losMuchachos of the Instituto de Astrofisica de Canarias.Based, in part, on observations obtained with the Danish 1.54 mtelescope at the European Southern Observatory, La Silla, Chile. Improved Astrometry and Photometry for the Luyten Catalog. II. Faint Stars and the Revised CatalogWe complete construction of a catalog containing improved astrometry andnew optical/infrared photometry for the vast majority of NLTT starslying in the overlap of regions covered by POSS I and by the secondincremental Two Micron All Sky Survey (2MASS) release, approximately 44%of the sky. The epoch 2000 positions are typically accurate to 130 mas,the proper motions to 5.5 mas yr-1, and the V-J colors to0.25 mag. Relative proper motions of binary components are measured to 3mas yr-1. The false-identification rate is ~1% for11<~V<~18 and substantially less at brighter magnitudes. Theseimprovements permit the construction of a reduced proper-motion diagramthat, for the first time, allows one to classify NLTT stars intomain-sequence (MS) stars, subdwarfs (SDs), and white dwarfs (WDs). We inturn use this diagram to analyze the properties of both our catalog andthe NLTT catalog on which it is based. In sharp contrast to popularbelief, we find that NLTT incompleteness in the plane is almostcompletely concentrated in MS stars, and that SDs and WDs are detectedalmost uniformly over the sky δ>-33deg. Our catalogwill therefore provide a powerful tool to probe these populationsstatistically, as well as to reliably identify individual SDs and WDs. Rotational velocities of A-type stars in the northern hemisphere. II. Measurement of v sin iThis work is the second part of the set of measurements of v sin i forA-type stars, begun by Royer et al. (\cite{Ror_02a}). Spectra of 249 B8to F2-type stars brighter than V=7 have been collected at Observatoirede Haute-Provence (OHP). Fourier transforms of several line profiles inthe range 4200-4600 Å are used to derive v sin i from thefrequency of the first zero. Statistical analysis of the sampleindicates that measurement error mainly depends on v sin i and thisrelative error of the rotational velocity is found to be about 5% onaverage. The systematic shift with respect to standard values fromSlettebak et al. (\cite{Slk_75}), previously found in the first paper,is here confirmed. Comparisons with data from the literature agree withour findings: v sin i values from Slettebak et al. are underestimatedand the relation between both scales follows a linear law ensuremath vsin inew = 1.03 v sin iold+7.7. Finally, thesedata are combined with those from the previous paper (Royer et al.\cite{Ror_02a}), together with the catalogue of Abt & Morrell(\cite{AbtMol95}). The resulting sample includes some 2150 stars withhomogenized rotational velocities. Based on observations made atObservatoire de Haute Provence (CNRS), France. Tables \ref{results} and\ref{merging} are only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.125.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/393/897 CHARM: A Catalog of High Angular Resolution MeasurementsThe Catalog of High Angular Resolution Measurements (CHARM) includesmost of the measurements obtained by the techniques of lunaroccultations and long-baseline interferometry at visual and infraredwavelengths, which have appeared in the literature or have otherwisebeen made public until mid-2001. A total of 2432 measurements of 1625sources are included, along with extensive auxiliary information. Inparticular, visual and infrared photometry is included for almost allthe sources. This has been partly extracted from currently availablecatalogs, and partly obtained specifically for CHARM. The main aim is toprovide a compilation of sources which could be used as calibrators orfor science verification purposes by the new generation of largeground-based facilities such as the ESO Very Large Interferometer andthe Keck Interferometer. The Catalog is available in electronic form atthe CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/386/492, and from theauthors on CD-Rom. CO 1st overtone spectra of cool evolved stars: Diagnostics for hydrodynamic atmosphere modelsWe present spectra covering the wavelength range 2.28 to 2.36 mu m at aresolution of Delta lambda = 0.0007 mu m (or R = 3500) for a sample of24 cool evolved stars. The sample comprises 8 M supergiants, 5 M giants,3 S stars, 6 carbon stars, and 2 RV Tauri variables. The wavelengthscovered include the main parts of the 12C16O v =2-0 and 3-1 overtone bands, as well as the v = 4-2 and 13CO v= 2-0 bandhead regions. CO lines dominate the spectrum for all the starsobserved, and at this resolution most of the observed features can beidentified with individual CO R- or P-branch lines or blends. Theobserved transitions arise from a wide range of energy levels extendingfrom the ground state to E/k > 20 000 K. We looked for correlationsbetween the intensities of various CO absorption line features and otherstellar properties, including IR colors and mass loss rates. Two usefulCO line features are the v = 2-0 R14 line, and the CO v = 2-0 bandhead.The intensity of the 2-0 bandhead shows a trend with K-[12] color suchthat the reddest stars (K-[12] > 3 mag) exhibit a wide range in 2-0bandhead depth, while the least reddened have the deepest 2-0 bandheads,with a small range of variation from star to star. Gas mass loss ratesfor both the AGB stars and the red supergiants in our sample correlatewith the K-[12] color, consistent with other studies. The data implythat stars with dot M_gas < 5x 10-7 Msuny-1 exhibit a much narrower range in the relative strengthsof CO 2-0 band features than stars with higher mass loss rates. Therange in observed spectral properties implies that there are significantdifferences in atmospheric structure among the stars in this sample.Figures 4-9, 11-14, 16, 17, 19-21, 23, 24 are only avalaible inelectronic form at http://www.edpsciences.org Ages of A-Type Vega-like Stars from uvbyβ PhotometryWe have estimated the ages of a sample of A-type Vega-like stars byusing Strömgren uvbyβ photometric data and theoreticalevolutionary tracks. We find that 13% of these A stars have beenreported as Vega-like stars in the literature and that the ages of thissubset run the gamut from very young (50 Myr) to old (1 Gyr), with noobvious age difference compared to those of field A stars. We clearlyshow that the fractional IR luminosity decreases with the ages ofVega-like stars. Catalogue of Apparent Diameters and Absolute Radii of Stars (CADARS) - Third edition - Comments and statisticsThe Catalogue, available at the Centre de Données Stellaires deStrasbourg, consists of 13 573 records concerning the results obtainedfrom different methods for 7778 stars, reported in the literature. Thefollowing data are listed for each star: identifications, apparentmagnitude, spectral type, apparent diameter in arcsec, absolute radiusin solar units, method of determination, reference, remarks. Commentsand statistics obtained from CADARS are given. The Catalogue isavailable in electronic form at the CDS via anonymous ftp tocdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcar?J/A+A/367/521 Research Note Hipparcos photometry: The least variable starsThe data known as the Hipparcos Photometry obtained with the Hipparcossatellite have been investigated to find those stars which are leastvariable. Such stars are excellent candidates to serve as standards forphotometric systems. Their spectral types suggest in which parts of theHR diagrams stars are most constant. In some cases these values stronglyindicate that previous ground based studies claiming photometricvariability are incorrect or that the level of stellar activity haschanged. Table 2 is only available in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/367/297 Spectroscopy of Pre-Main-Sequence Candidates of Spectral Type AF in the Young Galactic Cluster IC 4996We present the results of a spectroscopic analysis of thepre-main-sequence (PMS) candidates in IC 4996, proposed by Delgado etal. Spectral types and heliocentric radial velocities are calculated for16 stars in the field observed by these authors, 13 of them located inthe region of the color-magnitude diagram where their proposed PMS starsare located. The estimated heliocentric radial velocity of the clusteris centered around -12+/-5 km s^-1. From the radial velocitydistribution, six stars are rejected as cluster members, one of themshowing spectral features characteristic of an Am star. The remaining 10stars are confirmed as cluster members: three B-type stars and seven PMSstars of spectral types A4-F0 (six stars) and early G (one star). One ofthe proposed PMS members clearly shows radial velocity and spectral typevariations, as well as relatively broad Hα absorption. The G-typecluster member is a weak-lined T Tauri star with strong Li Iλ6708 absorption [W_λ(Li I)~=0.26 Å]. These resultsstrongly support the presence in the cluster of a populated sequence ofPMS stars of AF spectral type. CCD spectra of MK standards and a preliminary extension of the MK classification to the yellow-red region.Not Available The effective temperature scale of giant stars (F0-K5). II. Empirical calibration of Teff versus colours and [Fe/H]We present calibrations of the effective temperatures of giant starsversus [Fe/H] and colours (U-V), (B-V), (R-I), (V-R), (V-I), (V-K),(J-H), (J-K), (I-K), (V-L'), (b-y) and (u-b). These calibrations arebased on a large sample of field and globular cluster stars whichroughly cover spectral types from F0 to K5. Their effectivetemperatures, scaled to direct Teff determinations viareliable angular diameter measurements, were derived by applying theinfrared flux method. The empirical relations have been fitted topolynomials of the form theta_ {eff} = P(colour,[Fe/H]) by using theleast squares method. The precision of the fits ranges from 40 K for(V-K) to 170 K for (J-H). We tabulate intrinsic colours of giant starsin the ranges: 3500 K <= Teff <= 8000 K; -3.0 <=[Fe/H] <= +0.5. We also present the calibration of BC(V) as afunction of log(Teff) and metallicity. Finally, we comparethe resulting scale of temperatures with previous works. The effective temperature scale of giant stars (F0-K5). I. The effective temperature determination by means of the IRFMWe have applied the InfraRed Flux Method (IRFM) to a sample ofapproximately 500 giant stars in order to derive their effectivetemperatures with an internal mean accuracy of about 1.5% and a maximumuncertainty in the zero point of the order of 0.9%. For the applicationof the IRFM, we have used a homogeneous grid of theoretical modelatmosphere flux distributions developed by \cite[Kurucz (1993)]{K93}.The atmospheric parameters of the stars roughly cover the ranges: 3500 K<= T_eff <= 8000 K; -3.0 <= [Fe/H] <= +0.5; 0.5 <= log(g) <= 3.5. The monochromatic infrared fluxes at the continuum arebased on recent photometry with errors that satisfy the accuracyrequirements of the work. We have derived the bolometric correction ofgiant stars by using a new calibration which takes the effect ofmetallicity into account. Direct spectroscopic determinations ofmetallicity have been adopted where available, although estimates basedon photometric calibrations have been considered for some stars lackingspectroscopic ones. The adopted infrared absolute flux calibration,based on direct optical measurements of stellar angular diameters, putsthe effective temperatures determined in this work in the same scale asthose obtained by direct methods. We have derived up to fourtemperatures, TJ, TH, TK and T_{L'},for each star using the monochromatic fluxes at different infraredwavelengths in the photometric bands J, H, K and L'. They show goodconsistency over 4000 K, and there is no appreciable trend withwavelength, metallicity and/or temperature. We provide a detaileddescription of the steps followed for the application of the IRFM, aswell as the sources of error and their effect on final temperatures. Wealso provide a comparison of the results with previous work. Testing convection theories using Balmer line profiles of A, F, and G starsWe consider the effects of convection on the Balmer line profiles({H_α} and {H_β}) of A, F, and G stars. The standardmixing-length theory (MLT) atlas9 models of Kurucz (1993), with andwithout overshooting, are compared to atlas9 models based on theturbulent convection theory proposed by Canuto & Mazzitelli (1991,1992) and implemented by Kupka (1996), and the improved version of thismodel proposed by Canuto et al. (1996) also implemented by Kupka. TheBalmer line profiles are a useful tool in investigating convectionbecause they are very sensitive to the parameters of convection used inthe stellar atmosphere codes. The {H_α} and {H_β} lines areformed at different depths in the atmosphere. The {H_α} line isformed just above the convection zone. The {H_β} line, however, ispartially formed inside the convection zone. We have calculated the{T_eff} of observed stars by fitting Balmer line profiles to syntheticspectra and compared this to: (i) the {T_eff} of the fundamental stars;(ii) the {T_eff} of stars determined by the Infra-Red Flux Method and(iii) the {T_eff} determined by Geneva photometry for the stars in theHyades cluster. We find that the results from the {H_α} and{H_β} lines are different, as expected, due to the differing levelsof formation. The tests are inconclusive between three of the fourmodels; MLT with no overshooting, CM and CGM models, which all giveresults in reasonable agreement with fundamental values. The resultsindicate that for the MLT theory with no overshooting it is necessary toset the mixing length parameter alpha equal to 0.5 for stars with {T_eff<= 6000} K or {T_eff >= 7000} K. However for stars with {6000}K{<= T_eff <= 7000} K the required value for the parameter is{alpha >= 1.25}. Models with overshooting are found to be clearlydiscrepant, consistent with the results with uvby photometry by Smalley& Kupka (1997). Based on observations made at the Observatorio delRoque de los Muchachos using the Richardson-Brealey Spectrograph on the1.0m Jacobs Kapteyn Telescope. Averaged energy distributions in the stellar spectra.Not Available X-Ray Activity in the Open Cluster IC 4665We present the results of a joint ROSAT High Resolution Imager (HRI) andoptical investigation of the open cluster IC 4665. The ROSAT datacontains detections for 28 stellar sources in the field, including 22cluster members and candidate members spanning the color range -0.18<= (B-V)0 <= 1.63 (~B3-M3). Upper limits are given for theremaining members (or candidate members) in the HRI field. Keck HIRESspectra have been obtained that yield radial and rotational velocitymeasures, respectively, for faint, low-mass candidate members locatedwithin the field of the ROSAT HRI observation. In addition, photometryof possible optical counterparts to previously uncataloged X-ray sourcesin the HRI field is presented. The trends in X-ray properties with B-Vcolor in IC 4665 are found to be quite similar to that for other, morenearby young clusters such as the Pleiades and alpha Persei. Inparticular a maximum in normalized X-ray luminosity of log (LX/Lbol) ~=-3 is observed, beginning in the color range of (B-V)0 = 0.7-0.8. Thisis similar to the corresponding color range among Pleiades members, inagreement with the earlier estimate by Prosser & Giampapa that theage of IC 4665 is similar to the age of the Pleiades. The correlation ofrotation and X-ray emission levels is consistent with that in otheryoung clusters. Among the high-mass stars in IC 4665, five B stars aredetected as X-ray sources. Of these, one is a spectroscopic binary whilethe remaining objects are apparently single stars. The level ofintrinsic X-ray emission observed in the rapidly rotating (v sin i >200 km s-1), single B stars is consistent with an origin due to shockheating of the ambient medium by radiatively driven, rotationallyenhanced winds. On the basis of these observations and the results forother clusters, we argue that observed levels of X-ray emission inhigh-mass stars of log (LX/Lbol) > -6.0 are likely due to intrinsicemission associated with the B star itself rather than emission from alate-type secondary. Finally, our results suggest that the initialangular momentum distributions and the subsequent evolution of rotation,LX, and (LX/Lbol) occur in practically identical fashions in clusterswith ages <~100 Myr. The Age Range of Hyades StarsOn the basis of canonical models, the age of Hyades supercluster stars,whether in the Hyades and Praesepe clusters or the noncluster field,ranges from (5-6) x 10^8 to 10^9 yr. The difference between the parallaxderived from the supercluster motion and that obtained from Hipparcosobservations has a dispersion only twice that of the mean dispersion ofthe individual Hipparcos values. The supercluster appears not to containred giants on the first ascent of the red giant branch, but onlyasymptotic giant branch (clump'') stars. The masses obtained forindividual components of binary stars in the supercluster show adispersion of less than 10% when compared with model predictions. Broad-band JHK(L') photometry of a sample of giants with 0.5 > [Fe/H] > -3We present the results of a three-year campaign of broad-band photometryin the near-infrared J, H, K and L' bands for a sample of approximately250 giant stars carried out at the Observatorio del Teide (Tenerife,Spain). Transformations of the Telescopio Carlos Sanchez systeminto/from several currently used infrared systems are extended to theredward part of the colour axis. The linearity of our photometric systemin the range -3 mag [Fe/H] >-3. Data of comparable quality previouslypublished have been added to the sample in order to increase thereliability of the relations to be obtained. We also provide mean IRcolours for giant stars according to spectral type.ables 1, 2 and 3 are only available in electronic form via the CDS(anonymous ftp 130.79.128.5 or http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html Determination of the temperatures of selected ISO flux calibration stars using the Infrared Flux MethodEffective temperatures for 420 stars with spectral types between A0 andK3, and luminosity classes between II and V, selected for a fluxcalibration of the Infrared Space Observatory, ISO, have been determinedusing the Infrared Flux Method (IRFM). The determinations are based onnarrow and wide band photometric data obtained for this purpose, andtake into account previously published narrow-band measures oftemperature. Regression coefficients are given for relations between thedetermined temperatures and the photometric parameters (B2-V1), (b-y)and (B-V), corrected for interstellar extinction through use ofHipparcos parallaxes. A correction for the effect of metallicity on thedetermination of integrated flux is proposed. The importance of aknowledge of metallicity in the representation of derived temperaturesfor Class V, IV and III stars by empirical functions is discussed andformulae given. An estimate is given for the probable error of eachtemperature determination. Based on data from the ESA HipparcosAstrometry Satellite. Towards a fundamental calibration of stellar parameters of A, F, G, K dwarfs and giantsI report on the implementation of the empirical surface brightnesstechnique using the near-infrared Johnson broadband { (V-K)} colour assuitable sampling observable aimed at providing accurate effectivetemperatures of 537 dwarfs and giants of A-F-G-K spectral-type selectedfor a flux calibration of the Infrared Space Observatory (ISO). Thesurface brightness-colour correlation is carefully calibrated using aset of high-precision angular diameters measured by moderninterferometry techniques. The stellar sizes predicted by thiscorrelation are then combined with the bolometric flux measurementsavailable for a subset of 327 ISO standard stars in order to determineone-dimensional { (T, V-K)} temperature scales of dwarfs and giants. Theresulting very tight relationships show an intrinsic scatter induced byobservational photometry and bolometric flux measurements well below thetarget accuracy of +/- 1 % required for temperature determinations ofthe ISO standards. Major improvements related to the actual directcalibration are the high-precision broadband { K} magnitudes obtainedfor this purpose and the use of Hipparcos parallaxes for dereddeningphotometric data. The temperature scale of F-G-K dwarfs shows thesmallest random errors closely consistent with those affecting theobservational photometry alone, indicating a negligible contributionfrom the component due to the bolometric flux measurements despite thewide range in metallicity for these stars. A more detailed analysisusing a subset of selected dwarfs with large metallicity gradientsstrongly supports the actual bolometric fluxes as being practicallyunaffected by the metallicity of field stars, in contrast with recentresults claiming somewhat significant effects. The temperature scale ofF-G-K giants is affected by random errors much larger than those ofdwarfs, indicating that most of the relevant component of the scattercomes from the bolometric flux measurements. Since the giants have smallmetallicities, only gravity effects become likely responsible for theincreased level of scatter. The empirical stellar temperatures withsmall model-dependent corrections are compared with the semiempiricaldata by the Infrared Flux Method (IRFM) using the large sample of 327comparison stars. One major achievement is that all empirical andsemiempirical temperature estimates of F-G-K giants and dwarfs are foundto be closely consistent between each other to within +/- 1 %. However,there is also evidence for somewhat significant differential effects.These include an average systematic shift of (2.33 +/- 0.13) % affectingthe A-type stars, the semiempirical estimates being too low by thisamount, and an additional component of scatter as significant as +/- 1 %affecting all the comparison stars. The systematic effect confirms theresults from other investigations and indicates that previousdiscrepancies in applying the IRFM to A-type stars are not yet removedby using new LTE line-blanketed model atmospheres along with the updatedabsolute flux calibration, whereas the additional random component isfound to disappear in a broadband version of the IRFM using an infraredreference flux derived from wide rather than narrow band photometricdata. Table 1 and 2 are only available in the electronic form of thispaper The absolute magnitude of the early type MK standards from HIPPARCOS parallaxesWe analyse the standards of the MK system with the help of Hipparcosparallaxes, using only stars for which the error of the absolutemagnitude is <= 0.3 mag. We find that the main sequence is a wideband and that, although in general giants and dwarfs have differentabsolute magnitudes, the separation between luminosity classes V and IIIis not clear. Furthermore, there are a number of exceptions to thestrict relation between luminosity class and absolute magnitude. Weanalyse similarly the system of standards defined by Garrison & Gray(1994) separating low and high rotational velocity standards. We findsimilar effects as in the original MK system. We propose a revision ofthe MK standards, to eliminate the most deviant cases. Based on datafrom the ESA Hipparcos astrometry satellite Convection, Thermal Bifurcation, and the Colors of A StarsBroadband ultraviolet photometry from the TD-1 satellite andlow-dispersion spectra from the short wavelength camera of IUE have beenused to investigate a long-standing proposal of Bohm-Vitense that thenormal main-sequence A and early-F stars may divide into two differenttemperature sequences: (1) a high-temperature branch (and plateau)comprised of slowly rotating convective stars, and (2) a low-temperaturebranch populated by rapidly rotating radiative stars. We find noevidence from either data set to support such a claim, or to confirm theexistence of an "A-star gap" in the B-V color range 0.22 <= B-V <=0.28 due to the sudden onset of convection. We do observe, nonetheless,a large scatter in the 1800--2000 A colors of the A--F stars, whichamounts to ~0.65 mag at a given B-V color index. The scatter is notcaused by interstellar or circumstellar reddening. A convincing case canalso be made against binarity and intrinsic variability due topulsations of delta Sct origin. We find no correlation with establishedchromospheric and coronal proxies of convection, and thus nodemonstrable link to the possible onset of convection among the A--Fstars. The scatter is not instrumental. Approximately 0.4 mag of thescatter is shown to arise from individual differences in surface gravityas well as a moderate spread (factor of ~3) in heavy metal abundance andUV line blanketing. A dispersion of ~0.25 mag remains, which has noclear and obvious explanation. The most likely cause, we believe, is aresidual imprecision in our correction for the spread in metalabundances. However, the existing data do not rule out possiblecontributions from intrinsic stellar variability or from differential UVline blanketing effects owing to a dispersion in microturbulentvelocity. The role of convection on the UVBY colours of A, F, and G starsWe discuss the effects of convection on the theoretical uvby colours ofA, F, and G stars. The standard mixing-length theory atlas9 models ofKurucz (1993), with and without approximate overshooting, are comparedto models using the turbulent convection theory proposed by Canuto &Mazzitelli (1991, 1992) and implemented by Kupka (1996a). Comparisonwith fundamental T_eff and log g stars reveals that the Canuto &Mazzitelli models give results that are generally superior to standardmixing-length theory (MLT) without convective overshooting. MLT modelswith overshooting are found to be clearly discrepant. This is supportedby comparisons of non-fundamental stars, with T_eff obtained from theInfrared Flux Method and log g from stellar evolutionary models for opencluster stars. The Canuto & Mazzitelli theory gives values of(b-y)_0 and c_0 that are in best overall agreement with observations.Investigations of the m_0 index reveal that all of the treatments ofconvection presented here give values that are significantly discrepantfor models with T_eff < 6000 K. It is unclear as to whether this isdue to problems with the treatment of convection, missing opacity, orsome other reason. None of the models give totally satisfactory m_0indices for hotter stars, but the Canuto & Mazzitelli models are inclosest overall agreement above 7000 K. Grids of uvby colours, based onthe CM treatment of convection, are presented. These grids represent animprovement over the colours obtained from models using themixing-length theory. The agreement with fundamental stars enables thecolours to be used directly without the need for semi-empiricaladjustments that were necessary with the earlier colour grids. Table~5is only available at the CDS via anonymous ftp 130.79.128.5 or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html Notes on the convection in the ATLAS9 model atmospheres.The mixing-length theory for the convection, as it is used in the ATLAS9code (Kurucz, 1993a), is summarized and discussed. We investigated theeffect of the modification called approximate overshooting'' on themodel structure of the Sun and of stars with T_eff_ included between4000K and 8500K, logg included between 2.5 and 4.5, and metallicities[M/H]=0.0 and [M/H]=-3.0. We found that the Kurucz solar model (SUNK94)with the overshooting'' option switched on reproduces moreobservations than that without overshooting''. In theHgamma_ and Hbeta_ regions no solar model is ableto reproduce the level of the true continuum deduced fromhigh-resolution observations absolutely calibrated. At 486 nm thecomputed continuum is about 6.6% higher than that inferred from theobserved spectrum. We found that the largest effect of the approximateovershooting'' on the model structure occurs for models withT_eff_>6250K and it decreases with decreasing gravity. Thedifferences in (b-y), (B-V), and (V-K) indices computed from models withthe overshooting'' option switched on and off, correspond to T_eff_differences which may amount up to 180K, 100K, 60K respectively. Thedifferences in T_eff_ from Balmer profiles may amount up to 340K andthey occur also for T_eff_<6250K down to about 5000K. The c_1_ indexyields gravity differences {DELTA}logg as a function of logg which, foreach T_eff_, grow to a maximum value. The maximum {DELTA}logg decreaseswith increasing temperatures and ranges, for solar metallicity, from 0.7dex at logg=0.5 and T_eff_=5500K to 0.2dex at logg=4.5 and T_eff_=8000K.This behaviour does not change for [M/H]=-3.0. Comparisons with theobservations indicate that model parameters derived with differentmethods are more consistent when the overshooting'' option is switchedoff (NOVER models), except for the Sun. In particular for Procyon,T_eff_ and logg from NOVER models are closer to the parameters derivedfrom model independent methods than are T_eff_ and logg derived from theKurucz (1995) grids. However, no model is able to explain the wholeobserved spectrum of either the Sun or Procyon with a unique T_eff_,regardless of whether the overshooting'' option is switched on or off.Independently of the convection option, the largest differences inT_eff_ derived with different methods are of the order of 200K forProcyon and 150K for the Sun. On the Determination of Empirical Stellar Flux ScalesSeveral studies have appeared in the literature describing methods forderiving stellar continuum fluxes as simple functions of Johnson colorindices. In previous papers, we have used similar relations to derive CaII H and K line core fluxes for dwarf stars on Lowell Observatory'sSolar-Stellar Spectrograph (SSS) program. Our desire is to present ourdata, and complementary data from the Mt. Wilson and National SolarObservatory stellar and solar programs, in terms of physical fluxes.However, our existing relations break down for mid-K and later stars andfor giant stars, which form an important element of our target list. Inthis work I have used a broader range of spectrophotometry and angulardiamters than in our previous work to derive empirical flux scales forspectral types A to early M, luminosity classes I to V, and for fourcolor indices, Johnson B-V, V-R, R-I, and Stromgren b-y. In this paper,I describe the methods I used and present the desired flux scales. Icompare the results with those from earlier studies and present examplesof the use of the flux scales. The data and results are available on theWorld Wide Web. (SECTION: Stars) Intrinsic Energy Distribution in Stellar Spectra in the Wavelength Interval 320--760 NMThe intrinsic energy distributions in the interval 320--760 nm ofspectral types B5--G8 of luminosity V, F0--F5 of luminosity IV andG8--M2 of luminosity III, determined by authors, are intercompared withthe catalogue of the mean energy distribution data published bySviderskiene (1988). UBVRI Standard Stars at Northern DeclinationsAccurate values of V, B--V and U--B are given 123 stars of magnitudesfrom 6 to 11 at high northern declinations. For 36 stars also V--R andR--I color indices are given. Transformations from Theoretical Hertzsprung-Russell Diagrams to Color-Magnitude Diagrams: Effective Temperatures, B-V Colors, and Bolometric CorrectionsAbstract image available at:http://adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-bib_query?1996ApJ...469..355F&db_key=AST
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