High-resolution spectropolarimetry of κ Cet: A proxy for the young Sun

Abstract

κ¹ Cet (HD 20630, HIP 15457, d = 9.16 pc, V = 4.84) is a dwarf star approximately 30 light-years away in the equatorial constellation of Cetus. Among the solar proxies studied in the Sun in Time, κ¹ Cet stands out as potentially having a mass very close to solar and a young age. On this study, we monitored the magnetic field and the chromospheric activity from the Ca II H & K lines of κ¹ Cet. We used the technique of Least-Square-Deconvolution (LSD, Donati et al. 1997) by simultaneously extracting the information contained in all 8,000 photospheric lines of the echelogram (for a linelist matching an atmospheric model of spectral type K1). To reconstruct a reliable magnetic map and characterize the surface differential rotation of κ¹ Cet we used 14 exposures spread over 2 months, in order to cover at least two rotational cycles (Prot ~9.2 days). The Least Square deconvolution (LSD) technique was applied to detect the Zeeman signature of the magnetic field in each of our 14 observations and to measure its longitudinal component. In order to reconstruct the magnetic field geometry of κ¹ Cet, we applied the Zeeman Doppler Imaging (ZDI) inversion method. ZDI revealed a structure in the radial magnetic field consisting of a polar magnetic spot. On this study, we present the fisrt look results of a high-resolution spectropolarimetric campaign to characterize the activity and the magnetic fields of this young solar proxy.