A long-duration superflare on the K giant HD 251108

TL;DR

This study reports on a superflare observed on the active K giant HD 251108, providing detailed decay analysis and insights into the flare's physical properties, which align with smaller flare trends despite its exceptional strength.

Contribution

First detailed decay tracking of a superflare on a giant star, revealing consistent physical processes across a wide energy range.

Findings

Peak flux around 10^34 erg/s in X-ray band

Exponential decay time of 2.2 days

Flare loop length estimated at 2-4 times stellar radius

Abstract

Many giant stars are magnetically active, which causes rotational variability, chromospheric emission lines, and X-ray emission. Large outbursts in these emission features can set limits on the magnetic field strength and thus constrain the mechanism of the underlying dynamo. HD~251108 is a Li-rich active K-type giant. We find a rotational period of 21.3~d with color changes and additional long-term photometric variability. Both can be explained with very stable stellar spots. We followed the decay phase of a superflare for 28 days with NICER and from the ground. We track the flare decay in unprecedented detail in several coronal temperature components. With a peak flux around $10^{34}$~erg~s$^{-1}$ (0.5-4.0~keV) and an exponential decay time of 2.2~days in the early decay phase, this is one of the strongest flares ever observed; yet it follows trends established from samples of smaller flares, for example for the relations between H$\alpha$ and X-ray flux, indicating that the physical process that powers the flare emission is consistent over a large range of flare energies. We estimate a flare loop length about 2-4 times the stellar radius. No evidence is seen for abundance changes during the flare.