Radiative diffusion in a time-dependent outflow: a model for fast blue optical transients

Fast Blue Optical Transients (FBOTs) are luminous transients with fast evolving (typically trise < 12 days) light curve and blue color (usually−0.2 > g−r > −0.3)that cannot be explained by a supernova-like explosion. We propose a radiative diffusion in a time-dependent outflow model to interpret such special transients. In this model, we assume a stellar-mass black hole is formed from stellar core-collapse. As a central engine, the black hole accretes the infalling stellar envelope material via an accretion disk. Due to the extremely super- Eddington accretion rate, the disk ejects continuous outflow during a few days. We consider the ejection of the outflow to be time-dependent. The outflow is optically thick initially and photons are frozen in it. As the outflow expands over time, photons gradually escape, and our work is to model such an evolution. Numerical and analytical calculations are considered separately, and the results are consistent. We apply the model to three typical FBOTs: PS1-10bjp, ZTF18abukavn, and ATLAS19dqr. The modeling finds the total mass of the outflow (∼ 1M⊙), and the total time of the ejection (∼ a few days) for them, leading us to speculate that they may be the result of the collapse of massive stars.

Rotation suppresses giant-scale solar convection

The observational absence of giant convection cells near the Sun’s outer surface is a long-standing conundrum for solar modelers. We herein propose an explanation. Rotation strongly influences the internal dynamics, leading to suppressed convective velocities, enhanced thermal-transport efficiency, and (most significantly) relatively smaller dominant length scales. We specifically predict a characteristic convection length scale of roughly 30-Mm throughout much of the convection zone, implying weak flow amplitudes at 100- to 200-Mm giant cells scales, representative of the total envelope depth. Our reasoning is such that Coriolis forces primarily balance pressure gradients (geostrophy). Background vortex stretching balances baroclinic torques. Both together balance nonlinear advection. Turbulent fluxes convey the excess part of the solar luminosity that radiative diffusion cannot. We show that these four relations determine estimates for the dominant length scales and dynamical amplitudes strictly in terms of known physical quantities. We predict that the dynamical Rossby number for convection is less than unity below the near-surface shear layer, indicating rotational constraint.

Diffusive photospheres in gamma-ray bursts

ABSTRACT Photospheric emission may originate from relativistic outflows in two qualitatively different regimes: last scattering of photons inside the outflow at the photospheric radius or radiative diffusion to the boundary of the outflow. In this work, the measurement of temperature and flux of the thermal component in the early afterglows of several gamma-ray bursts along with the total flux in the prompt phase is used to determine initial radii of the outflow as well as its Lorentz factors. Results indicate that in some cases the outflow has relatively low Lorentz factors (Γ &lt; 10), favouring cocoon interpretation, while in other cases Lorentz factors are larger (Γ &gt; 10), indicating diffusive photospheric origin of the thermal component, associated with an ultrarelativistic outflow.

The impact of planet wakes on the location and shape of the water ice line in a protoplanetary disk

Context. Planets in accretion disks can excite spiral shocks and if these planets are massive enough, they can even open gaps in their vicinity. Both of these effects can influence the overall thermal structure of the disk. Aims. We model planets of different masses and semimajor axes in disks of various viscosities and accretion rates to examine their impact on disk thermodynamics and to highlight the mutable, non-axisymmetric nature of ice lines in systems with massive planets. Methods. We conducted a parameter study using numerical hydrodynamics simulations where we treated viscous heating, thermal cooling, and stellar irradiation as additional source terms in the energy equation, with some runs including radiative diffusion. Our parameter space consists of a grid containing different combinations of planet and disk parameters. Results. Both gap opening and shock heating can displace the ice line, with the effects amplified for massive planets in optically thick disks. The gap region can split an initially hot (T > 170 K) disk into a hot inner disk and a hot ring just outside of the planet’s location, while shock heating can reshape the originally axisymmetric ice line into water-poor islands along spirals. We also find that radiative diffusion does not alter the picture significantly in this context. Conclusions. Shock heating and gap opening by a planet can effectively heat up optically thick disks and, in general, they can move or reshape the water ice line. This can affect the gap structure and migration torques. It can also produce azimuthal features that follow the trajectory of spiral arms, creating hot zones which lead to “islands” of vapor and ice around spirals that could affect the accretion or growth of icy aggregates.

Hot subdwarf wind models with accurate abundances

Context. Hot subdwarfs are helium burning objects in late stages of their evolution. These subluminous stars can develop winds driven by light absorption in the lines of heavier elements. The wind strength depends on chemical composition which can significantly vary from star to star. Aims. We aim to understand the influence of metallicity on the strength of the winds of the hot hydrogen-rich subdwarfs HD 49798 and BD+18° 2647. Methods. We used high-resolution UV and optical spectra to derive stellar parameters and abundances using the TLUSTY and SYNSPEC codes. For derived stellar parameters, we predicted wind structure (including mass-loss rates and terminal velocities) with our METUJE code. Results. We derived effective temperature Teff = 45 900 K and mass M = 1.46 M⊙ for HD 49798 and Teff = 73 000 K and M = 0.38 M⊙ for BD+18° 2647. The derived surface abundances can be interpreted as a result of interplay between stellar evolution and diffusion. The subdwarf HD 49798 has a strong wind that does not allow for chemical separation and consequently the star shows solar chemical composition modified by hydrogen burning. On the other hand, we did not find any wind in BD+18° 2647 and its abundances are therefore most likely affected by radiative diffusion. Accurate abundances do not lead to a significant modification of wind mass-loss rate for HD 49798, because the increase of the contribution of iron and nickel to the radiative force is compensated by the decrease of the radiative force due to other elements. The resulting wind mass-loss rate Ṁ = 2.1 × 10−9 M⊙ yr−1 predicts an X-ray light curve during the eclipse which closely agrees with observations. On the other hand, the absence of the wind in BD+18° 2647 for accurate abundances is a result of its peculiar chemical composition. Conclusions. Wind models with accurate abundances provide more reliable wind parameters, but the influence of abundances on the wind parameters is limited in many cases.

Radiative shocks in spherical accretion

ABSTRACT In order to explore various aspects of radiative shocks, we examine standing radiative shock waves in spherical accretion flows onto a central gravitating body under the equilibrium diffusion approximation. In contrast to the usual one-dimensional shock, in radiative shocks a radiative precursor appears in the pre-shock region before the shock front, due to the radiative diffusion effect. Furthermore, in spherical flows around a central object the gravitational potential varies in this radiative precursor, and a curvature effect also exists. We first formulate such radiative shocks in spherical flows, derive the overall jump conditions, and solve the structure of the radiative precursor for both the gas and radiation pressure dominated cases. Since the jump conditions contain the coordinates of both ends of the radiative precursor, we must obtain both the solution and the endpoints of the precursor simultaneously. We find that the gravitational effect is not significant, although it cannot be ignored. The curvature effect exerts a strong influence on the structure and width of the precursor. The precursor starting point x1 normalized by the shock radius is roughly expressed by $x_1={\cal M}_1^{1/7}$ for a radiation pressure dominated shock, while $x_1=1.21^{({\cal M}_1-1)}$ for a gas pressure one, where ${\cal M}_1$ is the pre-shock Mach number.