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arxiv: 2603.28751 · v1 · pith:5EAXRQGAnew · submitted 2026-03-30 · 🌌 astro-ph.HE · astro-ph.SR

The average X-ray spectrum of the volume-complete M-, F-, G-, and K-type star sample within 10 pc of the Sun

classification 🌌 astro-ph.HE astro-ph.SR
keywords x-raystarsaveragebackgroundcollectiveemissionk-typemilky
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F, G, K and M type stars are the most abundant stellar population in the Milky Way and are expected to contribute to its diffuse X-ray emission. Yet their intrinsic average X-ray spectrum remains poorly constrained due to their faint X-ray luminosities, leaving their collective role in the X-ray background of the Milky Way uncertain. We analysed the volume-complete sample of M- (M0--M6) and FGK-type stars within 10 pc of the Sun using data from eROSITA all-sky survey aboard the Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) mission (eRASS:4). Individual spectra were normalized by exposure and distance and stacked to produce representative averages. The distance-normalized emission measures yield an average X-ray luminosity of $(2.6 \pm0.1)\times 10^{27}$ erg/s for M-type stars, and $(15\pm3)\times 10^{27}$ erg/s for F, G and K-type stars in 0.2--2.0 keV. The average spectra could be well described by a sum of three and two thermal models. Fitted temperatures and abundances remain consistent across M-star subgroups, while early-M stars are surprisingly on average less luminous than mid/late-M types. These results offer new insights into the collective X-ray properties of nearby stars, and provide motivation to explore the link with the unresolved soft X-ray background of the Galaxy.

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Cited by 2 Pith papers

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