• DOI:10.3390/galaxies10010003
• Corpus ID: 245424636

A Stringent Test of Magnetic Models of Stellar Evolution

@article{Torres2021AST,
  title={A Stringent Test of Magnetic Models of Stellar Evolution},
  author={Guillermo Torres and Gregory A. Feiden and Andrew M. Vanderburg and Jason Lee Curtis},
  journal={Galaxies},
  year={2021}
}

• G. Torres, G. Feiden, +1 author J. Curtis
• Published 22 December 2021
• Physics, Geology
• Galaxies

Main-sequence stars with convective envelopes often appear larger and cooler than predicted by standard models of stellar evolution for their measured masses. This is believed to be caused by stellar activity. In a recent study, accurate measurements were published for the K-type components of the 1.62-day detached eclipsing binary EPIC 219511354, showing the radii and temperatures for both stars to be affected by these discrepancies. This is a rare example of a system in which the age and chemical composition are known, by virtue of being a member of the well-studied open cluster Ruprecht 147 (age~3 Gyr, [Fe/H] = +0.10). Here, we report a detailed study of this system with nonstandard models incorporating magnetic inhibition of convection. We show that these calculations are able to reproduce the observations largely within their uncertainties, providing robust estimates of the strength of the magnetic fields on both stars: 1600 ± 130 G and 1830 ± 150 G for the primary and secondary, respectively. Empirical estimates of the magnetic field strengths based on the measured X-ray luminosity of the system are roughly consistent with these predictions, supporting this mechanism as a possible explanation for the radius and temperature discrepancies.