Chromospheric models for Altair (A7 IV-V)

The star, Altair (A7 IV-V), is clearly shown to have Lyman-alpha emission of chromospheric origin, while no evidence is found for the Mg II emission reported in previous investigations. We present non-Local Thermodymanic Equilibrium (non-LTE) semiempirical models incorporating partial redistribution of the chromosphere of Altair that reproduce the observed Lyman-alpha emission and the Mg II resonance absorption at 2800 A. We unambiguously establihed that chromospheres exist at spectral types as early as A7 on the main sequence, and we also demonstrate that it very unlikely that the observed emission originates in a corotating expanding wind. This result represents a new challenge for chromospheric heating theories. It may indicate that both differential rotation and convection layers, at least near the equator, exist in this fast rotating (v sin i = 220 km/s) star.