The radius and other fundamental parameters of the F9 V star beta Virginis

TL;DR

This paper precisely measures the fundamental parameters of the star beta Virginis using interferometry and combines these with oscillation data to improve stellar models and understand its physical characteristics.

Contribution

The study provides the first precise measurement of beta Virginis's radius, temperature, and luminosity, integrating interferometry with oscillation data to refine stellar parameters.

Findings

Radius of 1.703 +/- 0.022 R_sun

Effective temperature of 6059 +/- 49 K

Luminosity of 3.51 +/- 0.08 L_sun

Abstract

We have used the Sydney University Stellar Interferometer (SUSI) to measure the angular diameter of the F9 V star beta Virginis. After correcting for limb darkening and combining with the revised Hipparcos parallax, we derive a radius of 1.703 +/- 0.022 R_sun (1.3%). We have also calculated the bolometric flux from published measurements which, combined with the angular diameter, implies an effective temperature of 6059 +/- 49 K (0.8%). We also derived the luminosity of beta Vir to be L = 3.51 +/- 0.08 L_sun (2.1%). Solar-like oscillations were measured in this star by Carrier et al. (2005) and using their value for the large frequency separation yields the mean stellar density with an uncertainty of about 2%. Our constraints on the fundamental parameters of beta Vir will be important to test theoretical models of this star and its oscillations.