Evidence for Sympathetic Flaring in TESS Data

TL;DR

This study develops a new flare detection method and provides the first robust statistical evidence of sympathetic flaring on other stars, similar to solar flares, using TESS data.

Contribution

A novel flare detection algorithm was created and applied to TESS data, revealing the first statistically significant evidence of sympathetic flares on stars beyond the Sun.

Findings

Detected approximately 220,000 flares on 16,000 stars.

Found that 4-9% of flares are sympathetic, matching solar rates.

Confirmed sympathetic flaring as a common stellar phenomenon.

Abstract

Most flares on the Sun occur at random, but there is a small percentage of "sympathetic flaring" -- the triggering of one flare by another. Previously there had been no widespread confirmation of sympathetic flares on other stars. In this work, we developed a new flare detection algorithm that is sensitive to closely-separated and overlapping stellar flares. We applied it to TESS data and discovered ~ 220,000 flares on ~ 16,000 stars, the majority of which are M-dwarfs. The wait time distribution between flares demonstrates an excess of closely-separated flares, relative to expectations from a Poisson process. We attribute this to sympathetic flares, occurring at a rate of between 4% and 9%, which matches the rate seen on the Sun. Our result is the first statistically robust detection of sympathetic flares on other stars, demonstrating a commonality between the Sun and low-mass stars.