Detection of a Millimeter Flare From Proxima Centauri

TL;DR

This paper reports the detection of a powerful millimeter flare from Proxima Centauri, analyzing ALMA data to characterize the event and its implications for the star's environment and potential dust presence.

Contribution

First detection of a millimeter flare from Proxima Centauri with detailed spectral and polarization analysis, challenging previous assumptions about dust belts and stellar activity.

Findings

Detected a 1-minute flare reaching 100 mJy at 233 GHz.

No evidence for a dust belt at 1-4 AU from the star.

Possible coronal heating explains excess flux without dust.

Abstract

We present new analyses of ALMA 12-m and ACA observations at 233 GHz (1.3 mm) of the Proxima Centauri system with sensitivities of 9.5 and 47 $\mu$Jy beam$^{-1}$, respectively, taken from 2017 January 21 through 2017 April 25. These analyses reveal that the star underwent a significant flaring event during one of the ACA observations on 2017 March 24. The complete event lasted for approximately 1 minute and reached a peak flux density of $100\pm4$ mJy, nearly a factor of $1000\times$ brighter than the star's quiescent emission. At the flare peak, the continuum emission is characterized by a steeply falling spectral index with frequency, $F_\nu \propto \nu^\alpha$ with $\alpha = -1.77\pm0.45$, and a lower limit on the fractional linear polarization of $|Q/I| = 0.19\pm0.02$. Since the ACA observations do not show any quiescent excess emission, we conclude that there is no need to invoke the presence of a dust belt at $1-4$ AU. We also posit that the slight excess flux density of $101\pm9$ $\mu$Jy observed in the 12-m observations compared to the photospheric flux density of $74\pm4$ $\mu$Jy extrapolated from infrared wavelengths may be due to coronal heating from continual smaller flares, as is seen for AU Mic, another nearby, well-studied, M dwarf flare star. If this is true, then the need for warm dust at $\sim0.4$ AU is also removed.