The Heterogeneity of Surfaces of Magnetic AP Stars

The observations of spectrum-variability and light-variability of Ap stars are reviewed. It is shown that these variations are interpretable as due to the changing aspect of the spotted surface as the star rotates. It is stressed that we understand fairly well the geometry of the phenomenon but the physics is very far from being understood.Magnetic Ap stars are probably those where the presence of a spotted surface is very evident. Their spectrum-variability (profiles, line-intensity and radial velocity), light-variability and magnetic field variability, all occurring with the same period, are explained in a simple way if we assume that these variations are due to the changing aspect of the spotted surface as the star rotates. The oblique rotator model was proposed by Babcock in 1949 and by Stibbs in 1950 and was worked out in great detail by Deutsch (1954). This model allows us to explain the magnetic field variation from some + 1000 to some - 1000 gauss in a few days; it explains the crossover effect, the line-width versus period relations, the line - intensity and radial velocity variation, and in part also the light curves. The main objection against the oblique rotator hypothesis was the supposed existence of many irregularly variable magnetic stars. However, the large number of observations accumulated in the last twenty years indicates that probably all magnetic Ap spectrum-variables are regular variables with periods which are generally of a few days, but includes a small group of long period variables (100 days up to 23 years for HD 9996). The light variability, which is the quantity measurable with the highest precision, has often remained undetected, because the amplitude is always small, in many cases few hundreths of magnitude.