The MiMeS survey of magnetism in massive stars: introduction and overview

• Published in: Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society
• Main Authors: Wade, G., Neiner, C., Alecian, E., Grunhut, J., Petit, V., Batz, B. De, Bohlender, D., Cohen, D., Henrichs, H., Kochukhov, O., Landstreet, J., Manset, N., Martins, F., Mathis, S., Oksala, M., Owocki, S., Rivinius, Th., Shultz, M, Sundqvist, J., Townsend, R., Ud-Doula, A., Bouret, J-C, Braithwaite, J., Briquet, M., Carciofi, A, David-Uraz, A., Folsom, C., Fullerton, A., Leroy, B., Marcolino, W., Moffat, A., Nazé, Y., Louis, N., Auriere, M., Bagnulo, S., Bailey, J., Barbá, R., Blazère, A., Bohm, T., Catala, C., Donati, J-F, Ferrario, L., Harrington, D., Howarth, I., Ignace, R., Kaper, L., Lüftinger, T., Prinja, R., Vink, J., Weiss, W.
• Other Authors: Royal Military College of Canada, Department of Physics, Laboratoire d'études spatiales et d'instrumentation en astrophysique (LESIA), Université Pierre et Marie Curie - Paris 6 (UPMC)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Observatoire de Paris, Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris sciences et lettres (PSL)-Université Paris Diderot - Paris 7 (UPD7)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), European Southern Observatory (ESO), Sources de l'Avance, Natl Res Council Canada, Herzberg Inst Astrophys, Victoria, BC V9E 2E7 Canada, Natl Res Council Canada, Herzberg Inst Astrophys, Victoria, Uppsala University, University of Western Ontario (UWO), Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope Corporation (CFHT), National Research Council of Canada (NRC)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-University of Hawai'i Honolulu (UH), Laboratoire Univers et Particules de Montpellier (LUPM), Institut National de Physique Nucléaire et de Physique des Particules du CNRS (IN2P3)-Université de Montpellier (UM)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Astrophysique Interprétation Modélisation (AIM (UMR7158 / UMR_E_9005 / UM_112)), Commissariat à l'énergie atomique et aux énergies alternatives (CEA)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Université Paris Diderot - Paris 7 (UPD7)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), University of Delaware Newark, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München (LMU), University of Wisconsin-Madison, Pennsylvania State University (Penn State), Penn State System, Institut de recherche en astrophysique et planétologie (IRAP), Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées (OMP), Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Université Toulouse III - Paul Sabatier (UT3), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France -Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), Space Telescope Science Institute (STSci), Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ), School of engineering sciences, University of Southampton, Université de Liège, Laboratoire de Biomodélisation et Ingénierie des Handicaps - EA 4322 (HANDIBIO), Université de Toulon (UTLN), Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de l'Observatoire Midi-Pyrénées (LATT), Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Université Fédérale Toulouse Midi-Pyrénées-Institut national des sciences de l'Univers (INSU - CNRS)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France -Institut de Recherche pour le Développement (IRD)-Centre National d'Études Spatiales Toulouse (CNES)-Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS)-Météo-France -Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique (CNRS), European Southern Observatory Santiago (ESO), University of Newcastle Australia (UoN), Universidad de La Serena (USERENA), Laboratoire Astrophysique de Toulouse-Tarbes (LATT), University College of London London (UCL), Astronomical Institute Anton Pannekoek (AI PANNEKOEK), University of Amsterdam Amsterdam (UvA), Institut für Astrophysik Wien, Universität Wien
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: HAL CCSD 2015
• Subjects: [SDU.ASTR.SR]Sciences of the Universe [physics]/Astrophysics [astro-ph]/Solar and Stellar Astrophysics [astro-ph.SR]; Canada; narval
• Online Access: https://hal.science/hal-02029526; https://hal.science/hal-02029526/document; https://hal.science/hal-02029526/file/wade15.pdf; https://doi.org/10.1093/mnras/stv2568

International audience The MiMeS (Magnetism in Massive Stars) project is a large-scale, high-resolution, sensitive spectropolarimetric investigation of the magnetic properties of O-and early B-type stars. Initiated in 2008 and completed in 2013, the project was supported by three Large Program allocations, as well as various programmes initiated by independent principal investigators, and archival resources. Ultimately, over 4800 circularly polarized spectra of 560 O and B stars were collected with the instruments ESPaDOnS (Echelle SpectroPolarimetric Device for the Observation of Stars) at the Canada-France-Hawaii Telescope, Narval at the Télescope Bernard Lyot and HARPSpol at the European Southern Observatory La Silla 3.6 m telescope, making MiMeS by far the largest systematic investigation of massive star magnetism ever undertaken. In this paper, the first in a series reporting the general results of the survey, we introduce the scientific motivation and goals, describe the sample of targets, review the instrumentation and observational techniques used, explain the exposure time calculation designed to provide sensitivity to surface dipole fields above approximately 100 G, discuss the polarimetric performance, stability and uncertainty of the instrumentation, and summarize the previous and forthcoming publications.