eprintid: 1494039 rev_number: 43 eprint_status: archive userid: 608 dir: disk0/01/49/40/39 datestamp: 2016-05-29 04:28:39 lastmod: 2021-10-14 22:46:30 status_changed: 2018-01-04 14:23:06 type: article metadata_visibility: show creators_name: Martins, F creators_name: Simon-Diaz, S creators_name: Palacios, A creators_name: Howarth, I creators_name: Georgy, C creators_name: Walborn, NR creators_name: Bouret, J-C creators_name: Barba, R title: Surface abundances of ON stars ispublished: pub divisions: UCL divisions: B04 divisions: C06 divisions: F60 keywords: stars: massive – stars: abundances – stars: evolution – stars: atmospheres note: This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. abstract: Context. Massive stars burn hydrogen through the CNO cycle during most of their evolution. When mixing is efficient or when mass transfer in binary systems occurs, chemically processed material is observed at the surface of O and B stars. Aims. ON stars show stronger lines of nitrogen than morphologically normal counterparts. Whether this corresponds to the presence of material processed through the CNO cycle is not known. Our goal is to answer this question. Methods. We performed a spectroscopic analysis of a sample of ON stars with atmosphere models. We determined the fundamental parameters as well as the He, C, N, and O surface abundances. We also measured the projected rotational velocities. We compared the properties of the ON stars to those of normal O stars. Results. We show that ON stars are usually rich in helium. Their CNO surface abundances are fully consistent with predictions of nucleosynthesis. ON stars are more chemically evolved and rotate − on average − faster than normal O stars. Evolutionary models including rotation cannot account for the extreme enrichment observed among ON main sequence stars. Some ON stars are members of binary systems, but others are single stars as indicated by stable radial velocities. Mass transfer is therefore not a simple explanation for the observed chemical properties. Conclusions. We conclude that ON stars show extreme chemical enrichment at their surface, consistent with nucleosynthesis through the CNO cycle. Its origin is not clear at present. date: 2015-06-01 date_type: published publisher: EDP SCIENCES S A official_url: http://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201526130 oa_status: green full_text_type: pub language: eng primo: open primo_central: open_green verified: verified_manual elements_id: 1053710 doi: 10.1051/0004-6361/201526130 lyricists_name: Howarth, Ian lyricists_id: IDHOW62 actors_name: Waragoda Vitharana, Nimal actors_id: NWARR44 actors_role: owner full_text_status: public publication: Astronomy & Astrophysics volume: 578 number: A10 pages: 16 issn: 1432-0746 citation: Martins, F; Simon-Diaz, S; Palacios, A; Howarth, I; Georgy, C; Walborn, NR; Bouret, J-C; Martins, F; Simon-Diaz, S; Palacios, A; Howarth, I; Georgy, C; Walborn, NR; Bouret, J-C; Barba, R; - view fewer <#> (2015) Surface abundances of ON stars. Astronomy & Astrophysics , 578 (A10) 10.1051/0004-6361/201526130 <https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361%2F201526130>. Green open access document_url: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1494039/1/Howarth_aa26130-15.pdf