Shell star Shell star A shell star is a star having a spectrum that shows extremely broad absorption lines, plus some very narrow absorption lines. They typically also show some emission lines, usually from the Balmer series but occasionally of other lines. The broad absorption lines are due to rapid rotation of the photosphere, the emission lines from an equatorial disk, and the narrow absorption lines are produced when the disc is seen nearly edge-on. Shell stars have spectral types O7.5 to F5, with rotation velocities of 200–300 km/s, not far from the point when the rotational acceleration would disrupt the star.
S-type star are two distinct classes of S-type stars: intrinsic S stars; and extrinsic S stars. The presence of Technetium is used to distinguish the two classes, only being found in the intrinsic S-type stars. Intrinsic S-type stars are thermal pulsing asymptotic giant branch (TP-AGB) stars. AGB stars have inert carbon-oxygen cores and undergo fusion both in an inner helium shell and an outer hydrogen shell. They are large cool M class giants. The thermal pulses, created by flashes from the helium shell, cause strong convection within the upper layers of the star. These pulses become stronger as the star evolves and