On the radiative equilibrium of a stellar atmosphere. XX.

Abstract

In this paper the exact solution for a standard problem in the theory of line formation in stellar atmospheres is obtained. The problem allows for the combined effects of monochromatic line scattering and general continuous absorption but assumes that the ratio of the line (σ_ν) to the continuous (κ_ν) absorption coefficient is constant through the atmosphere and that the Planck intensity, B_ν, is a linear function of the optical thickness in (σ_ν + κ_ν). The exact solution involves the H-functions already tabulated in Paper XIX and their first and second moments. A table of the latter is provided in this paper.