Speaker
Mark Veyette
(Boston University)
Description
For M dwarf stars, stellar age is perhaps the most difficult fundamental parameter to measure. With main-sequence lifetimes much greater than the age of the universe, M dwarf ages cannot be derived by matching observables to model grids. M dwarfs can also maintain rapid rotation for several gigayears, complicating efforts to derive ages through gyrochonology. We present a novel approach to measuring ages of field M dwarfs based on the abundances of age-sensitive elements. Detailed chemical analysis of M dwarfs is complicated by the millions of molecular lines that dominate their spectra. We have developed a physically-motivated and empirically-calibrated method to measure the abundances of Fe and Ti in M dwarf from high-resolution NIR spectra. Our method employs M dwarfs with wide FGK companions to calibrate abundances derived from comparison to a grid of synthetic M dwarf spectra. The relative abundance of Ti (an alpha element) to Fe can be used to chemically age-date field M dwarfs.
Primary author
Mark Veyette
(Boston University)
Co-authors
Andrew Mann
(Department of Astronomy, The University of Texas at Austin)
Philip Muirhead
(Department of Astronomy, Boston University)
