Theoretical continuum energy distributions for Wolf-Rayet stars

Abstract

We discuss the problem of assigning an effective temperature to modelsof stellar evolution in the Wolf-Rayet stage. We conclude that it isbest to use models with different velocity laws depending on the stellartemperature. We follow the simplest approach and propose to use astandard law with beta = 1 for the cooler and beta = 2 for the hotterWolf-Rayet stars. We present energy distributions from non-LTE modelcalculations with a beta = 2 velocity law. The new calculations,together with published results based on beta = 1, allow one tosynthesize realistic spectra of starburst regions.