| Type |
Conference Paper |
| Names |
Benjamin Brown, A. F. Kowalski, M. Mathioudakis, E. J. Hooper, S. L. Hawley, R. A. Osten, J. P. Wisniewski |
| Proceedings Title |
Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society |
| Conference Name |
American Astronomical Society, AAS Meeting #220, #204.52 |
| Volume |
220 |
| Date |
May 1, 2012 |
| URL |
http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2012AAS...22020452B |
| Library Catalog |
NASA ADS |
| Abstract |
The primary mode of radiative energy release in stellar flares is in the
optical and near-ultraviolet (NUV) continuum. Active M-dwarf stares
flare more frequently than the Sun, and their flares can be
substantially more energetic. The dominant component in solar flare
white light is thought to be Hydrogen recombination, whereas for stellar
M dwarf flares, the dominant component is thought to be T 10,000 K
blackbody emission. Recently we have obtained very high time-cadence
spectral observations of the flaring M-dwarf YZ CMi (3200-6000A) using
the Robert Stobie Spectrograph on the 11-meter South African Large
Telescope (SALT/RSS), achieving 100x better temporal resolution than
has previously been possible at the atmospheric limit. We observed a
megaflare of over 100x flux enhancement in the NUV emission. Here we
discuss the evolution of the stellar flare spectrum during the rapid
impulsive phase of the flare and the implications for stellar flare
models. |