Winds of Planet Hosting Stars
Citation:
Nicholson, B. A., Mengel, M. W., Brookshaw, L., Vidotto, A. A., Carter, B. D., Marsden, S. C., Soutter, J., Waite, I. A., Horner, J, Winds of Planet Hosting Stars, 14th Australian Space Research Conference, 14th Australian Space Research Conference, 2015, 67-Download Item:
Abstract:
The field of exoplanetary science is one of the most rapidly growing areas of
astrophysical research. As more planets are discovered around other stars, new techniques
have been developed that have allowed astronomers to begin to characterise them. Two of
the most important factors in understanding the evolution of these planets, and potentially
determining whether they are habitable, are the behaviour of the winds of the host star and
the way in which they interact with the planet. The purpose of this project is to reconstruct
the magnetic fields of planet hosting stars from spectropolarimetric observations, and to use
these magnetic field maps to inform simulations of the stellar winds in those systems using
the Block Adaptive Tree Solar-wind Roe Upwind Scheme (
BATS
-
R
-
US
) code. The
BATS
-
R
-
US
code was originally written to investigate the behaviour of the Solar wind, and so has
been altered to be used in the context of other stellar systems. These simulations will give
information about the velocity, pressure and density of the wind outward from the host star.
They will also allow us to determine what influence the winds will have on the space weather
environment of the planet. This paper presents the preliminary results of these simulations
for the star
Bo
̈
otis, using a newly reconstructed magnetic field map based on previously
published observations. These simulations show interesting structures in the wind velocity
around the star, consistent with the complex topology of its magnetic field.
Author's Homepage:
http://people.tcd.ie/vidottoaDescription:
PUBLISHED
Author: VIDOTTO, ALINE
Other Titles:
14th Australian Space Research Conference14th Australian Space Research Conference
Type of material:
Conference PaperCollections
Availability:
Full text availableMetadata
Show full item recordLicences: