AG Carinae

AG Carinae (AG Car) is a star in the constellation Carina. It is

AG Carinae
classified as a luminous blue variableand is one of the most luminous
stars in the Milky Way. The large distance (20,000 light-years) and
intervening dust mean that the star is not usually visible to the naked
eye; its apparent brightness varies erratically between magnitude 5.7
and 9.0.

Contents
1 Description
2 Distance controversy
3 References
4 External links

AG Car (Hubble Space Telescope image)

Description Observation data
Epoch J2000 Equinox J2000

Constellation Carina
Right ascension 10h 56m 11.57699s[1]
Declination 60 27 12.8056[1]
Apparent magnitude (V) 6.96[2] (5.7 9.0)[3]
Characteristics
Spectral type LBV
UB color index 0.58[2]
AAVSO light curve of luminous blue variable
BV color index +0.61[2]
AG Car from 1 Jan 1940 to 23 Nov 2010.
Up is brighter and down is fainter. Variable type LBV[4]
Astrometry
The star is surrounded by a nebula of ejected material at 0.41.2pc
Proper motion () RA: 5.89[1] mas/yr
from the star. The nebula contains around 15 M, all lost from the
Dec.: +2.45[1] mas/yr
star around 10,000 years ago. There is an 8.8pc wide empty cavity in
Parallax () 0.40 0.22[5] mas
the interstellar medium around the star, presumably cleared by fast
winds earlier in the star's life.[6][7] Distance 6,000[6] pc
Absolute magnitude (MV) ~-8 (at minimum)[7]
AG Carinae is apparently in a transitional phase between a massive
class O blue supergiant and a WolfRayet star, where it is highly Details
unstable and suffers from erratic pulsations, occasional larger
Mass 55[6] M
outbursts, and rare massive eruptions. The spectral type varies
between WN11 at visual minimum and an early A hypergiant at
Radius 50500[8] R
Luminosity 1.5 106[9] L
Temperature 8,000-26,000[8] K
maximum.[7] At visual minimum the star is about 65 R and 20,000 Rotation 13 2[9] days
24,000K, while at maximum it is over 400 R and 8,000K. The Rotational velocity 220 50[9] km/s
temperature varies at different minima.[8][10] (v sin i)

One study calculated that the bolometric luminosity of AG Carinae Other designations
decreases during the S Doradus outbursts, unlike most LBVs which
CD593430, HD 94910, HIP 53461,
remain at approximately constant luminosity. The luminosity drops
SAO 251185, WR 31b, AAVSO 1052
from around 1.5 million L at visual minimum to around 1
69
million L at visual maximum, possibly due to the energy required to
Database references
expand a considerable fraction of the star.[7]
SIMBAD data
Evolutionary models of the star suggest that it had a low rotation rate
[6]
for much of its life, but current observations show fairly rapid rotation.

Models of LBV progenitors of type IIb supernovae list AG Carinae as matching the final stellar spectrum prior to core collapse,
although the models are for stars with 20 to 25 times the mass of the Sun while AG Carinae is thought to be considerably larger.[11]
The initial mass of the star would have been around 100M and is now thought to be 55-70M.[6][7]

Distance controversy
Parallaxes from data release 1 (DR1) of the Gaia mission suggest a much closer distance to AG Carinae and its neighbour Hen 3-519
than previously accepted, around 2 kpc. Then both stars would be less luminous than LBVs and it isgued
ar that they would be former
[12]
red supergiants whose unusual characteristics are the result of binary evolution.

The earlier Hipparcos parallax for AG Carinae had a mar

gin of error larger than the parallax itself and so gave little information about
its distance. The distance of 6,000 pc is based assumptions about the properties of LBVs, models of interstellar extinction, and
kinematical measurements.[13] The Gaia DR1 parallax, derived from the combination of the first year of Gaia measurements with
Tycho astrometry, is 0.40 0.22 mas. The Gaia team recommend that a further 0.3 mas systematic error is allowed for (i.e. added to
the formal margin of error).[5] Smith et al. argue that the 0.3 mas systematic margin of error can be ignored and that the implied
distance to AG Carinae is 2.50 1.41 kpc.[12]

References
1. Van Leeuwen, F. (2007). "Validation of the new Hipparcos reduction".Astronomy and Astrophysics. 474 (2): 653
664. Bibcode:2007A&A...474..653V (http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2007A&A...474..653V) . arXiv:0708.1752 (https://
arxiv.org/abs/0708.1752) . doi:10.1051/0004-6361:20078357(https://doi.org/10.1051%2F0004-6361%3A2007835
7).
2. Nicolet, B. (1978). "Photoelectric photometric Catalogue of homogeneous measurements in the UBV System".
Astronomy and Astrophysics Supplement Series . 34: 149. Bibcode:1978A&AS...34....1N (http://adsabs.harvard.ed
u/abs/1978A&AS...34....1N).
3. Watson, C. L. (2006). "The International V
ariable Star Index (VSX)".The Society for Astronomical Sciences 25th
Annual Symposium on Telescope Science. Held May 2325. 25: 47. Bibcode:2006SASS...25...47W (http://adsabs.h
arvard.edu/abs/2006SASS...25...47W).
4. Samus, N. N.; Durlevich, O. V.; Kazarovets, R. V. (1997). "The General Catalog of Variable Stars (GCVS)".Baltic
Astronomy. 6: 296. Bibcode:1997BaltA...6..296S (http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/1997BaltA...6..296S) .
5. Gaia Collaboration (2016). "VizieR Online Data Catalog: Gaia DR1 (Gaia Collaboration, 2016)".VizieR On-line Data
Catalog: I/337. Originally published in: Astron. Astrophys
. 1337. Bibcode:2016yCat.1337....0G (http://adsabs.harvar
d.edu/abs/2016yCat.1337....0G).
 6. Vamvatira-Nakou, C.; Hutsemekers, D.; Royer, P.; Cox, N. L. J.; Naze, Y.; Rauw, G.; Waelkens, C.; Groenewegen,
M. A. T. (2015). "The Herschel view of the nebula around the luminous blue variable star AG Carinae".Astronomy &
Astrophysics. 1504: 3204. Bibcode:2015A&A...578A.108V(http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2015A&A...578A.108V) .
arXiv:1504.03204 (https://arxiv.org/abs/1504.03204) [astro-ph.SR (https://arxiv.org/archive/astro-ph.SR)].
doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201425090(https://doi.org/10.1051%2F0004-6361%2F201425090) .
7. Groh, J. H.; Hillier, D. J.; Damineli, A.; Whitelock, P. A.; Marang, F.; Rossi, C. (2009). "ON THE NATURE OF THE
PROTOTYPE LUMINOUS BLUE VARIABLE AG CARINAE. I. FUNDAMENT AL PARAMETERS DURING VISUAL
MINIMUM PHASES AND CHANGES IN THE BOLOMETRIC LUMINOSITY DURING THE S-Dor CYCLE". The
Astrophysical Journal. 698 (2): 16981720. Bibcode:2009ApJ...698.1698G (http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2009Ap
J...698.1698G). arXiv:0904.2363 (https://arxiv.org/abs/0904.2363) . doi:10.1088/0004-637X/698/2/1698(https://doi.
org/10.1088%2F0004-637X%2F698%2F2%2F1698) .
8. Stahl, O.; Jankovics, I.; Kovcs, J.; Wolf, B.; Schmutz, W.; Kaufer, A.; Rivinius, Th.; Szeifert, Th. (2001). "Long-term
spectroscopic monitoring of the Luminous Blue V ariable AG Carinae". Astronomy and Astrophysics. 375: 5469.
Bibcode:2001A&A...375...54S (http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2001A&A...375...54S) . doi:10.1051/0004-
6361:20010824 (https://doi.org/10.1051%2F0004-6361%3A20010824) .
9. Groh, J. H.; Hillier, D. J.; Damineli, A. (July 2011), "On the Nature of the Prototype Luminous Blue V
ariable AG
Carinae. II. Witnessing a Massive Star Evolving Close to the Eddington and Bistability Limits", The Astrophysical
Journal, 736 (1): 46, Bibcode:2011ApJ...736...46G (http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2011ApJ...736...46G) ,
arXiv:1105.0814 (https://arxiv.org/abs/1105.0814) , doi:10.1088/0004-637X/736/1/46(https://doi.org/10.1088%2F00
04-637X%2F736%2F1%2F46)
10. Groh, J. H.; Damineli, A.; Hillier, D. J. (2008). P. Benaglia, ed. "LBVs and the nature of the S Dor cycles: The case of
AG Carinae". Massive Stars: Fundamental Parameters and Circumstellar Interactions . 33: 132.
Bibcode:2008RMxAC..33..132G(http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2008RMxAC..33..132G) . arXiv:astro-ph/0702612 (ht
tps://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0702612) .
11. Groh, J. H.; Meynet, G.; Ekstrm, S. (2013). "Massive star evolution: luminous blue variables as unexpected
supernova progenitors".Astronomy & Astrophysics. 550: 4. Bibcode:2013A&A...550L...7G (http://adsabs.harvard.ed
u/abs/2013A&A...550L...7G). arXiv:1301.1519 (https://arxiv.org/abs/1301.1519) . doi:10.1051/0004-
6361/201220741 (https://doi.org/10.1051%2F0004-6361%2F201220741) . L7.
12. Smith, N.; Stassun, K. G. (2017). "The Canonical Luminous Blue ariable
V AG Car and Its Neighbor Hen 3-519 are
Much Closer than Previously Assumed".The Astronomical Journal. 153 (3): 7. Bibcode:2017AJ....153..125S (http://a
dsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2017AJ....153..125S). arXiv:1610.06522 (https://arxiv.org/abs/1610.06522) .
doi:10.3847/1538-3881/aa5d0c(https://doi.org/10.3847%2F1538-3881%2Faa5d0c) . 125.
13. Groh, J. H.; Hillier, D. J.; Damineli, A.; Whitelock, P. A.; Marang, F.; Rossi, C. (2009). "On the Nature of the Prototype
Luminous Blue Variable Ag Carinae. I. Fundamental Parameters During Visual Minimum Phases and Changes in the
Bolometric Luminosity During the S-Dor Cycle".The Astrophysical Journal. 698 (2): 1698.
Bibcode:2009ApJ...698.1698G (http://adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2009ApJ...698.1698G) . arXiv:0904.2363 (https://arxiv.
org/abs/0904.2363) . doi:10.1088/0004-637X/698/2/1698(https://doi.org/10.1088%2F0004-637X%2F698%2F2%2
F1698).

External links
2MASS Atlas Image Gallery: Miscellaneous Objectsincludes an infrared image of AG Carinae

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