# Seismology of stars in the Hyades and M67 open clusters : theoretical constraints on the mixing length parameter

 dc.contributor.advisor Guenther, David B. dc.creator Sills, Kenneth Royal dc.date.accessioned 2011-05-09T12:32:19Z dc.date.available 2011-05-09T12:32:19Z dc.date.issued 1996 dc.identifier.other QB539 O83 S55 1996 dc.identifier.uri http://library2.smu.ca/xmlui/handle/01/22559 dc.description iv, 37 leaves : ill. (1 col.) ; 28 cm. dc.description Includes abstract. dc.description Includes bibliographical references (leaves 34-36). dc.description.abstract The mixing length parameter is a free parameter governing convective energy transport in current stellar models, and is poorly constrained by current photometric observations. Theoretical nonradial pulsation spectra have been calculated for main-sequence stars in the Hyades and M67 open clusters. It is shown that the major eigenfrequency spacing is sensitive to the mixing length parameter, and relatively insensitive to uncertainties in stellar metallicity, age, and helium abundance. Given the predicted uncertainties in observing the major eigenfrequency spacing of stars in the Hyades and M67 clusters, it is shown that proposed seismological studies of these clusters (Gilliland et al. 1993; Appourchaux et al. 1991) could determine the mixing length parameters for member stars to within ± 0.2. The determination of the mixing length parameter for a number of different, well-characterized stars would allow for the parameterization of convective properties as a function of other stellar characteristics. Such a parameterization would be beneficial to current efforts to numerically simulate stellar convection from first principles (Demarque 1996; Kim et al. 1996). dc.description.provenance Made available in DSpace on 2011-05-09T12:32:19Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 0 en dc.language.iso en dc.publisher Halifax, N.S. : Saint Mary's University dc.subject.lcc QB539.O83 dc.subject.lcsh Astroseismology -- Mathematical models dc.subject.lcsh Stars -- Open clusters -- Observations dc.subject.lcsh Stellar oscillations -- Mathematical models dc.subject.lcsh Solar oscillations -- Mathematical models dc.title Seismology of stars in the Hyades and M67 open clusters : theoretical constraints on the mixing length parameter dc.type Text thesis.degree.name Master of Science in Astronomy thesis.degree.level Masters thesis.degree.discipline Astronomy and Physics thesis.degree.grantor Saint Mary's University (Halifax, N.S.)
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