AS 314: A dusty A-type hypergiant

We present the results of our observations of the poorly-studied emission-line star AS 314 which include high-resolution spectroscopy, obtained at the 6 -meter telescope of the Russian Academy of Sciences, multicolor optical and near-infrared photometry. The strong H alpha line: H beta and H gamma of moderate strength and a number of weak Fe II lines were detected in emission. The Balmer lines and most of the Fe II lines show narrow P Cyg-type profiles which implies a very low terminal velocity of the stellar wind. Very weak signs of emission are found in H delta. Photospheric lines detected for the first time allowed us to determine the object's spectral type. A0. The luminosity, M-bol similar to -8.0 mag was estimated using several methods and implies that AS 314 is a hypergiant, which is located at about 10 kpc from the Sun and has an initial mass of similar to 20 M-.. Modeling of the Balmer line profiles resulted in the following parameters of the stellar wind: (M) over dot = 2 10(-5) M-. yr(-1), v(infinity) = 75 km s(-1). The star is located within the LBV strip in the HRD. Its noticeable far-IR excess is due to the circumstellar dust emission and is likely evidence of an LBV-type outburst in the past.