Research Division Seminar
IAU G5 talk: Stellar chemical compositions with 3D non-LTE models

Abstract

Spectroscopic analyses of stellar chemical compositions are model-dependent, and shortcomings in the models often limit the accuracy of the final results.  For late-type stars like our Sun, two of the main problems in present-day methods are that they assume the stellar atmosphere is a) one-dimensional (1D) and hydrostatic, and b) satisfies local thermodynamic equilibrium (LTE).  We can relax these assumptions simultaneously by performing detailed 3D non-LTE radiative transfer post-processing of 3D radiative-hydrodynamic model stellar atmospheres.  I shall give a brief overview of this approach, and illustrate its impact on carbon, oxygen, and iron abundances in late-type stars.