High Temperature Structure in Cool Binary Stars

Abstract

Strong high temperature emission lines in the EUVE spectra of binary stars containing cool components (Alpha Aur [Capella], 44 Boo, Lambda And, and VY Ari) provide the basis to define reliably the differential emission measure of hot plasma. The emission measure distributions for the short-period (P ≤ 13 d) binary systems show a high temperature enhancement over a relatively narrow temperature region similar to that originally found in Capella (Dupree et al. 1993). The emission measure distributions of rapidly rotating single stars 31 Com and AB Dor also contain a local enhancement of the emission measure although at different temperatures and width from Capella, suggesting that the enhancement in these objects may be characteristic of rapid rotation of a stellar corona. This feature might be identified with a (polar) active region, although its density and absolute size are unknown; in the binaries Capella and VY Ari, the feature is narrow and it may arise from an interaction region between the components.