An unusual brightening of Eta Carinae

Kris Davidson; Theodore R. Gull; Roberta M Humphreys; Kazunori Ishibashi; Patricia Whitelock; Leonid Berdnikov; Peter J. Mcgregor; Travis S. Metcalfe; Elisha Polomski; Mario Hamuy

doi:10.1086/301063

An unusual brightening of Eta Carinae

Kris Davidson, Theodore R. Gull, Roberta M Humphreys, Kazunori Ishibashi, Patricia Whitelock, Leonid Berdnikov, Peter J. Mcgregor, Travis S. Metcalfe, Elisha Polomski, Mario Hamuy

Minnesota Institute for Astrophysics

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53 Scopus citations

Abstract

HST/Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph data show that the apparent near-UV, visual-wavelength, and near-IR brightness of η Car increased by a factor of two during 1998. Meanwhile its Homunculus ejecta nebula brightened by about 30%, the largest fluctuation of this type in the past 40 years. These developments were quite unexpected and are not easy to explain. Some dust has probably been destroyed, while the star's luminosity may have increased even though it was already close to the Eddington limit. Such a rapid luminosity change would be a truly remarkable phenomenon, not predicted by existing models.

Original language	English (US)
Pages (from-to)	1777-1783
Number of pages	7
Journal	Astronomical Journal
Volume	118
Issue number	4
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1086/301063
State	Published - Oct 1999

Keywords

Circumstellar matter
ISM: jets and outflows
Stars: activity
Stars: individual (η Carinae)
Stars: peculiar
Stars: winds, outflows

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title = "An unusual brightening of Eta Carinae",

abstract = "HST/Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph data show that the apparent near-UV, visual-wavelength, and near-IR brightness of η Car increased by a factor of two during 1998. Meanwhile its Homunculus ejecta nebula brightened by about 30%, the largest fluctuation of this type in the past 40 years. These developments were quite unexpected and are not easy to explain. Some dust has probably been destroyed, while the star's luminosity may have increased even though it was already close to the Eddington limit. Such a rapid luminosity change would be a truly remarkable phenomenon, not predicted by existing models.",

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AU - Davidson, Kris

AU - Gull, Theodore R.

AU - Humphreys, Roberta M

AU - Ishibashi, Kazunori

AU - Whitelock, Patricia

AU - Berdnikov, Leonid

AU - Mcgregor, Peter J.

AU - Metcalfe, Travis S.

AU - Polomski, Elisha

AU - Hamuy, Mario

PY - 1999/10

Y1 - 1999/10

N2 - HST/Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph data show that the apparent near-UV, visual-wavelength, and near-IR brightness of η Car increased by a factor of two during 1998. Meanwhile its Homunculus ejecta nebula brightened by about 30%, the largest fluctuation of this type in the past 40 years. These developments were quite unexpected and are not easy to explain. Some dust has probably been destroyed, while the star's luminosity may have increased even though it was already close to the Eddington limit. Such a rapid luminosity change would be a truly remarkable phenomenon, not predicted by existing models.

AB - HST/Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph data show that the apparent near-UV, visual-wavelength, and near-IR brightness of η Car increased by a factor of two during 1998. Meanwhile its Homunculus ejecta nebula brightened by about 30%, the largest fluctuation of this type in the past 40 years. These developments were quite unexpected and are not easy to explain. Some dust has probably been destroyed, while the star's luminosity may have increased even though it was already close to the Eddington limit. Such a rapid luminosity change would be a truly remarkable phenomenon, not predicted by existing models.

KW - Circumstellar matter

KW - ISM: jets and outflows

KW - Stars: activity

KW - Stars: individual (η Carinae)

KW - Stars: peculiar

KW - Stars: winds, outflows

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An unusual brightening of Eta Carinae

Abstract

Keywords

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