Prolate stars due to meridional flows

Abstract

We have shown analytically that shapes of incompressible stars could be prolate if appropriate meridional flows exist. Although this result is strictly valid only if either the meridional flow or the rotation is absent and the vorticity is associated uniformly with meridional flow, this implies that perpendicular forces against centrifugal and/or magnetic forces might play important roles within stars. A consequence of the presence of meridional flows might be to decrease stellar oblateness due to centrifugal and/or magnetic fields.