Monday

It has long been known that stars lose mass in the form of winds. For cool stars (spectral types F, G, K and M), the winds are driven by their several million degree coronae. However, the winds of cool stars are extremely diffuse making direct detections impossible with present day instruments. Additionally, the precise mechanisms responsible for heating the coronae to these temperatures are not currently known though it is clear that the stellar magnetic field must play a key role. Determining the rate at which cool stars lose mass is therefore extremely challenging. For hot stars, that are much brighter (spectral types O, B and A), winds are driven by radiation pressure. The mass-loss rates of these stars are orders of magnitude larger than their low mass counterparts. Recent observations have shown that some fraction of hot stars also possess magnetic fields. However, the way in which these magnetic fields interact with the wind is still an open question. In this talk I will discuss recent advances in the field of stellar winds as well as the future of the field.