Bright OB stars in the Galaxy

Abstract

Context.Recent results strongly challenge the canonical picture of massive star winds: various evidence indicates that currently accepted mass-loss rates, , may need to be revised downwards, by factors extending to one magnitude or even more. This is because the most commonly used mass-loss diagnostics are affected by “clumping” (small-scale density inhomogeneities), influencing our interpretation of observed spectra and fluxes.