Broadening and Redward Asymmetry of Hα Line Profiles Observed by LAMOST during a Stellar Flare on an M-type Star

Abstract

Stellar flares are characterized by sudden enhancement of electromagnetic radiation in stellar atmospheres. So far, much of our understanding of stellar flares has come from photometric observations, from which plasma motions in flare regions could not be detected. From the spectroscopic data of LAMOST DR7, we have found one stellar flare that is characterized by an impulsive increase followed by a gradual decrease in the Hα line intensity on an M4-type star, and the total energy radiated through Hα is estimated to be of the order of 10³³ erg. The Hα line appears to have a Voigt profile during the flare, which is likely caused by Stark pressure broadening due to the dramatic increase in electron density and/or opacity broadening due to the occurrence of strong nonthermal heating. Obvious enhancement has been identified in the red wing of the Hα line profile after the impulsive increase in the Hα line intensity. The red-wing enhancement corresponds to plasma moving away from the Earth at a velocity of 100–200 km s⁻¹. According to our current knowledge of solar flares, this red-wing enhancement may originate from: (1) flare-driven coronal rain, (2) chromospheric condensation, or (3) a filament/prominence eruption either with nonradial backward propagation or with strong magnetic suppression. The total mass of the moving plasma is estimated to be of the order of 10¹⁵ kg.