Dust in the circumstellar environment of AG Carinae - Evidence for a bipolar and helical structure

Abstract

view Abstract Citations (44) References (12) Co-Reads Similar Papers Volume Content Graphics Metrics Export Citation NASA/ADS Dust in the Circumstellar Environment of AG Carinae: Evidence for a Bipolar and Helical Structure Paresce, Francesco ; Nota, Antonella Abstract The intermediate surroundings of the Galactic luminous blue variable AG Car have been imaged at 0.8 arcsec resolution through broad-band B, V, R, and I filters with the STScl coronagraph on the ESO 2.2 m telescope. High anisotropic continuum emission in all these bands is clearly detected above sky background at intensity levels in the range m(V) = 17.9-19.4 mag/sq arcsec. Most of the signal is confined to a prominent bipolar structure elongated along the NE-SW direction extending from a few arcsec out to about 15 arcsec corresponding to a projected linear distance of about 0.5 pc from the star. The morphology of the SW extension seems to consist of two, about 1.5 arcsec thick outwardly spiraling helical filaments embedded in the brightest part of the gaseous ring nebula. Its essentially neutral color with respect to the star suggests that the observed radiation is starlight scattered by grains, while the almost constant brightness of the filaments implies a dust column density increasing with distance from the star. Publication: The Astrophysical Journal Pub Date: June 1989 DOI: 10.1086/185463 Bibcode: 1989ApJ...341L..83P Keywords: Blue Stars; Cosmic Dust; Stellar Envelopes; Stellar Luminosity; Continuous Radiation; Emission Spectra; Spectral Bands; Stellar Winds; Astrophysics; STARS: CIRCUMSTELLAR SHELLS; STARS: INDIVIDUAL CONSTELLATION NAME: AG CARINAE; STARS: EMISSION-LINE full text sources ADS | data products SIMBAD (2)