In V471 Tau:
- The atmosphere is extended, to at least 2 K star radii.
- The gas must be magnetically confined.
- The temperature increases with height.
- The gas is in co-rotation about the K star.
- The gas exhibits blue shifts (flows?) to about 70 km/s.
- There are strong and phase-variable asymetries in the absorbing gas.
- The asymetries are likely not caused by the WD.
- This is consistent with an incomplete shell near the
Keplerian co-rotation radius.
Conclusions:
- A lot of
gas is confined near the the Keplerian co-rotation radius by giant magnetic
loops (forming a quasi-dipolar magnetic canopy?).
- The H-alpha prominences
may be cool condensations within a hotter gas.
- The gas in V471 Tau, and the AB Dor pedestal
emission, likely have the same origin.
- Rapidly rotating stars have large-scale magnetospheres,
with transitions regions and coronae to match.
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