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Exocomet Signatures Around the A-shell Star Phi LeonisWe present an intensive monitoring of high-resolution spectra of the Ca II K line in the A7IV shell star Phi Leonis at very short (minutes, hours), short (night to night), and medium (weeks, months) timescales. The spectra show remarkable variable absorptions on timescales of hours, days, and months. The characteristics of these sporadic events are very similar to most that are observed toward the debris disk host star Beta Pictoris, which are commonly interpreted as signs of the evaporation of solid, comet-like bodies grazing or falling onto the star. Therefore, our results suggest the presence of solid bodies around Phi Leonis. To our knowledge, with the exception of Beta Pictoris, our monitoring has the best time resolution at the mentioned timescales for a star with events attributed to exocomets. Assuming the cometary scenario and considering the timescales of our monitoring, our results indicate that Phi Leonis presents the richest environment with comet-like events known to date, second only to Beta Pictoris.
Document ID
20170006196
Acquisition Source
Goddard Space Flight Center
Document Type
Reprint (Version printed in journal)
Authors
Eiroa, C.
(Universidad Autonoma de Madrid Cantoblanco, Spain)
Rebollido, I.
(Universidad Autonoma de Madrid Cantoblanco, Spain)
Montesinos, B.
(Center for Scientific Information and Documentation Madrid, Spain)
Villaver, E.
(Universidad Autonoma de Madrid Cantoblanco, Spain)
Absil, O.
(Liege Univ. Belgium)
Henning, Th.
(Max-Planck-Inst. fuer Astronomie Heidelberg, Germany)
Bayo, A.
(Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso Valparaiso, Chile)
Canovas, H.
(Universidad Autonoma de Madrid Cantoblanco, Spain)
Carmona, A.
(Toulouse Univ. France)
Chen, Ch.
(Space Telescope Science Inst. Baltimore, MD, United States)
Ertel, S.
(Arizona Univ. Tucson, AZ, United States)
Iglesias, D. P.
(Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso Valparaiso, Chile)
Launhardt, R.
(Max-Planck-Inst. fuer Astronomie Heidelberg, Germany)
Maldonado, J.
(Istituto di Astrofisica Spaziale e Fisica Cosmica (INAF-IASF) Palermo, Italy)
Meeus, G.
(Universidad Autonoma de Madrid Cantoblanco, Spain)
Moor, A.
(Konkoly Observatory Budapest, Hungary)
Mora, A.
(European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC) Madrid, Spain)
Mustill, A. J.
(Lund Observatory Sweden)
Riviere-Marichalar, P.
(European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC) Madrid, Spain)
Olofsson, J.
(Universidad Catolica de Valparaiso Valparaiso, Chile)
Roberge, A.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD United States)
Date Acquired
July 7, 2017
Publication Date
October 10, 2016
Publication Information
Publication: Astronomy & Astrophysics
Publisher: ESO
Volume: 594
ISSN: 0004-6361
e-ISSN: 2197-3504
Subject Category
Astrophysics
Report/Patent Number
GSFC-E-DAA-TN44053
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other
Keywords
high-resolution spectra of the Ca II K line

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