Yellow hypergiant V509 Cas: Stable in the ‘yellow void’

Abstract

Context. The yellow hypergiant star V509 Cas is currently undergoing an extreme phase of evolution. Having experienced eruptive mass-loss outbursts in the 20th century, the star’s effective temperature reached record high values in the early 2000s. However, since then, the star’s behaviour has displayed an unprecedented level of stability. In spite of that, the star could be traversing through the ‘yellow void’ instability region. Aims. To describe the current evolutionary state of V509 Cas, we analysed its variability using photometric and spectroscopic data collected over recent years. By comparing our findings with historical records, we aim to determine whether the star’s surface shows signs of stabilisation. Additionally, we investigate the variability of emission components in the wings of certain spectral lines to highlight the contribution of the circumstellar gaseous disc to this phenomenon. Methods. Our spectroscopic monitoring observations were carried out at Tartu Observatory over the course of seven years, supplemented by echelle spectra obtained at the Nordic Optical Telescope, as well as publicly available photometric data from Gaia, AAVSO, and AAVSO’s Bright Star Monitor programme. We estimated the variability of effective temperature and radial velocity from the spectral time series and correlated it with the brightness variability of V509 Cas. Results. The results indicate that the star’s average brightness level has remained stable throughout the observed period, with an amplitude of variability ∼0.1 mag. While the amplitude of short-term temperature fluctuations has decreased compared to the early 2000s, the variability of the radial velocity remains similar to historical values from the early 20th century. Moreover, we show how the variable radial velocity affects the emission components in some absorption lines (e.g. Sc II) and how that follows the hypothesis of a disc surrounding the star.