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High-resolution extreme ultraviolet spectroscopy of G191-B2B: structure of the stellar photosphere and the surrounding interstellar medium

Barstow, MA; Cruddace, RG; Kowalski, MP; Bannister, NP; Yentis, D; Lapington, JS; Tandy, JA; ... Barbee, TW; + view all (2005) High-resolution extreme ultraviolet spectroscopy of G191-B2B: structure of the stellar photosphere and the surrounding interstellar medium. Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society , 362 (4) 1273 - 1278. 10.1111/j.1365-2966.2005.09394.x. Green open access

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Abstract

We have continued our detailed analysis of the high-resolution (R= 4000) spectroscopic observation of the DA white dwarf G191-B2B, obtained by the Joint Astrophysical Plasmadynamic Experiment (J-PEX) normal incidence sounding rocket-borne telescope, comparing the observed data with theoretical predictions for both homogeneous and stratified atmosphere structures. We find that the former models give the best agreement over the narrow waveband covered by J-PEX, in conflict with what is expected from previous studies of the lower resolution but broader wavelength coverage Extreme Ultraviolet Explorer spectra. We discuss the possible limitations of the atomic data and our understanding of the stellar atmospheres that might give rise to this inconsistency. In our earlier study, we obtained an unusually high ionization fraction for the ionized He ii present along the line of sight to the star. In the present paper, we obtain a better fit when we assume, as suggested by Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph results, that this He ii resides in two separate components. When one of these is assigned to the local interstellar cloud, the implied He ionization fraction is consistent with measurements along other lines of sight. However, the resolving power and signal-to-noise available from the instrument configuration used in this first successful J-PEX flight are not sufficient to clearly identify and prove the existence of the two components.

Type: Article
Title: High-resolution extreme ultraviolet spectroscopy of G191-B2B: structure of the stellar photosphere and the surrounding interstellar medium
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1111/j.1365-2966.2005.09394.x
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1111/j.1365-2966.2005.09394.x
Language: English
Additional information: © 2005 RAS Definitive versions of articles pre-2013 are available at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1111/(ISSN)1365-2966, now published by http://mnras.oxfordjournals.org
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL BEAMS > Faculty of Maths and Physical Sciences
URI: https://discovery-pp.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/40453
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