On the Properties of Blue Large-Amplitude Pulsators. No BLAPs in the Magellanic Clouds

On the Properties of Blue Large-Amplitude Pulsators. No BLAPs in the Magellanic Clouds

Paweł Pietrukowicz

We present the properties of the recently discovered class of variable stars, Blue Large-Amplitude Pulsators (BLAPs). These extremely rare, short-period pulsating objects were detected thanks to regular, high-cadence observations of hundreds of millions of Milky Way stars by the OGLE variability survey. The new variables closely resemble classical pulsators, Cepheids, and RR Lyrae-type stars, but at effective temperatures at which pulsations are due to the presence of iron-group elements. Theory shows that BLAPs are evolved low-mass stars with a giant-like structure, but their origin remains a mystery. In this contribution, we report the negative result of a search for BLAPs in the whole Magellanic System.

Proceedings of the Polish Astronomical Society, vol. 6, 258-262 (2018)

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