| 1. |
- Blommaert, J. A. D. L., et al.
(författare)
-
Herschel/PACS observations of the 69 mu m band of crystalline olivine around evolved stars
- 2014
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 565, s. A109-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. We present 48 Herschel/PACS spectra of evolved stars in the wavelength range of 67-72 mu m. This wavelength range covers the 69 mu m band of crystalline olivine (Mg-2 2xFe(2x)SiO4). The width and wavelength position of this band are sensitive to the temperature and composition of the crystalline olivine. Our sample covers a wide range of objects: from high mass-loss rate AGB stars (OH/IR stars, (M) over dot >= 10(-5) M-circle dot/yr), through post-AGB stars with and without circumbinary disks, to planetary nebulae and even a few massive evolved stars. Aims. The goal of this study is to exploit the spectral properties of the 69 mu m band to determine the composition and temperature of the crystalline olivine. Since the objects cover a range of evolutionary phases, we study the physical and chemical properties in this range of physical environments. Methods. We fit the 69 mu m band and use its width and position to probe the composition and temperature of the crystalline olivine. Results. For 27 sources in the sample, we detected the 69 mu m band of crystalline olivine (Mg(2-2x)Fe(2x)SiO4). The 69 mu m band shows that all the sources produce pure forsterite grains containing no iron in their lattice structure. The temperature of the crystalline olivine as indicated by the 69 mu m band, shows that on average the temperature of the crystalline olivine is highest in the group of OH/IR stars and the post-AGB stars with confirmed Keplerian disks. The temperature is lower for the other post-AGB stars and lowest for the planetary nebulae. A couple of the detected 69 mu m bands are broader than those of pure magnesium-rich crystalline olivine, which we show can be due to a temperature gradient in the circumstellar environment of these stars. The disk sources in our sample with crystalline olivine are very diverse. They show either no 69 mu m band, a moderately strong band, or a very strong band, together with a temperature for the crystalline olivine in their disk that is either very warm (similar to 600 K), moderately warm (similar to 200 K), or cold (similar to 120 K), respectively.
|
|
| 2. |
- Cernicharo, J., et al.
(författare)
-
Detection of anhydrous hydrochloric acid, HCl, in IRC+10216 with the Herschel SPIRE and PACS spectrometers Detection of HCI in IRC+10216
- 2010
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 518, s. L136-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We report on the detection of anhydrous hydrochloric acid (hydrogen chlorine, HCl) in the carbon-rich star IRC+10216 using the spectroscopic facilities onboard the Herschel satellite. Lines from J = 1-0 up to J = 7-6 have been detected. From the observed intensities, we conclude that HCl is produced in the innermost layers of the circumstellar envelope with an abundance relative to H-2 of 5 x 10(-8) and extends until the molecules reach its photodissociation zone. Upper limits to the column densities of AlH, MgH, CaH, CuH, KH, NaH, FeH, and other diatomic hydrides have also been obtained.
|
|
| 3. |
- Decin, L., et al.
(författare)
-
Silicon in the dust formation zone of IRC+10216
- 2010
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 518, s. L143-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The interstellar medium is enriched primarily by matter ejected from evolved low and intermediate mass stars. The outflows from these stars create a circumstellar envelope in which a rich gas-phase and dust-nucleation chemistry takes place. We observed the nearest carbon-rich evolved star, IRC + 10216, using the PACS (55-210 mu m) and SPIRE (194-672 mu m) spectrometers on board Herschel. We find several tens of lines from SiS and SiO, including lines from the v = 1 vibrational level. For SiS these transitions range up to J = 124-123, corresponding to energies around 6700 K, while the highest detectable transition is J = 90-89 for SiO, which corresponds to an energy around 8400 K. Both species trace the dust formation zone of IRC + 10216, and the broad energy ranges involved in their detected transitions permit us to derive the physical properties of the gas and the particular zone in which each species has been formed. This allows us to check the accuracy of chemical thermodynamical equilibrium models and the suggested depletion of SiS and SiO due to accretion onto dust grains.
|
|
| 4. |
- Decin, L., et al.
(författare)
-
Warm water vapour in the sooty outflow from a luminous carbon star
- 2010
-
Ingår i: Nature. - : Springer Science and Business Media LLC. - 0028-0836 .- 1476-4687. ; 467:7311, s. 64-67
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The detection(1) of circumstellar water vapour around the ageing carbon star IRC + 10216 challenged the current understanding of chemistry in old stars, because water was predicted(2) to be almost absent in carbon-rich stars. Several explanations for the water were postulated, including the vaporization of icy bodies (comets or dwarf planets) in orbit around the star(1), grain surface reactions(3), and photochemistry in the outer circumstellar envelope(4). With a single water line detected so far from this one carbon-rich evolved star, it is difficult to discriminate between the different mechanisms proposed. Here we report the detection of dozens of water vapour lines in the far-infrared and sub-millimetre spectrum of IRC + 10216 using the Herschel satellite(5). This includes some high-excitation lines with energies corresponding to similar to 1,000 K, which can be explained only if water is present in the warm inner sooty region of the envelope. A plausible explanation for the warm water appears to be the penetration of ultraviolet photons deep into a clumpy circumstellar envelope. This mechanism also triggers the formation of other molecules, such as ammonia, whose observed abundances(6) are much higher than hitherto predicted(7).
|
|
| 5. |
- Ramstedt, Sofia, et al.
(författare)
-
The wonderful complexity of the Mira AB system
- 2014
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 570, s. Art. no. L14-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- We have mapped the (CO)-C-12(3-2) line emission around the Mira AB system at 0 ''.5 resolution using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). The CO map shows amazing complexity. The circumstellar gas has been shaped by different dynamical actors during the evolution of the system, and several morphological components can be identified. The companion is marginally resolved in continuum emission and is currently at 0 ''.487 +/- 0 ''.006 separation. In the main line component, centered on the stellar velocity, spiral arcs around Mira A are found. The spiral appears to be relatively flat and oriented in the orbital plane. An accretion wake behind the companion is clearly visible, and the projected arc separation is about 5 ''. In the blue wing of the line emission, offset from the main line, several large (similar to 5-10 '') opposing arcs are found. We tentatively suggest that this structure is created by the wind of Mira B blowing a bubble in the expanding envelope of Mira A.
|
|
| 6. |
- Royer, P., et al.
(författare)
-
PACS and SPIRE spectroscopy of the red supergiant VY CMa
- 2010
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 518, s. L145-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- With a luminosity > 10(5) L-circle dot and a mass-loss rate of similar to 2 x 10(-4) M-circle dot yr(-1), the red supergiant VY CMa truly is a spectacular object. Because of its extreme evolutionary state, it could explode as supernova any time. Studying its circumstellar material, into which the supernova blast will run, provides interesting constraints on supernova explosions and on the rich chemistry taking place in such complex circumstellar envelopes. We have obtained spectroscopy of VY CMa over the full wavelength range offered by the PACS and SPIRE instruments of Herschel, i.e. 55-672 micron. The observations show the spectral fingerprints of more than 900 spectral lines, of which more than half belong to water. In total, we have identified 13 different molecules and some of their isotopologues. A first analysis shows that water is abundantly present, with an ortho-to-para ratio as low as similar to 1.3:1, and that chemical non-equilibrium processes determine the abundance fractions in the inner envelope.
|
|
| 7. |
- Groenewegen, M. A. T., et al.
(författare)
-
An independent distance estimate to cw leonis
- 2012
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 543, s. L8-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- CW Leo has been observed six times between October 2009 and June 2012 with the SPIRE instrument on board the Herschel satellite. Variability has been detected in the flux emitted by the central star with a period of 639 +/- 4 days, in good agreement with determinations in the literature. Variability is also detected in the bow shock around CW Leo that had previously been detected in the ultraviolet and Herschel PACS/SPIRE data. Although difficult to prove directly, our working hypothesis is that this variability is directly related to that of the central star. In this case, fitting a sine curve with the period fixed to 639 days results in a time-lag in the variability between bow shock and the central star of 402 +/- 37 days. The orientation of the bow shock relative to the plane of the sky is unknown (but see below). For an inclination angle of zero degrees, the observed time-lag translates into a distance to CW Leo of 130 +/- 13 pc, and for non-zero inclination angles the distance is smaller. Fitting the shape of the bow shock with an analytical model (Wilkin 1996, ApJ, 459, L31), the effect of the inclination angle on the distance may be estimated. Making the additional assumption that the relative peculiar velocity between the interstellar medium (ISM) and CW Leo is determined entirely by the star space velocity with respect to the local standard of rest (i.e. a stationary ISM), the inclination angle is found to be (-33.3 +/- 0.8)degrees based on the observed proper motion and radial velocity. Using the Wilkin model, our current best estimate of the distance to CW Leo is 123 +/- 14 pc. For a distance of 123 pc, we derive a mean luminosity of 7790 +/- 150 L-circle dot (internal error).
|
|
| 8. |
- Groenewegen, M. A. T., et al.
(författare)
-
MESS (Mass-loss of Evolved StarS), a Herschel key program
- 2011
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 526, s. A162-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- MESS (Mass-loss of Evolved StarS) is a guaranteed time key program that uses the PACS and SPIRE instruments on board the Herschel space observatory to observe a representative sample of evolved stars, that include asymptotic giant branch (AGB) and post-AGB stars, planetary nebulae and red supergiants, as well as luminous blue variables, Wolf-Rayet stars and supernova remnants. In total, of order 150 objects are observed in imaging and about 50 objects in spectroscopy. This paper describes the target selection and target list, and the observing strategy. Key science projects are described, and illustrated using results obtained during Herschel's science demonstration phase. Aperture photometry is given for the 70 AGB and post-AGB stars observed up to October 17, 2010, which constitutes the largest single uniform database of far-IR and sub-mm fluxes for late-type stars.
|
|
| 9. |
- Jorissen, A., et al.
(författare)
-
X Herculis and TX Piscium: two cases of ISM interaction with stellar winds observed by Herschel
- 2011
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 532
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars X Her and TX Psc have been imaged at 70 and 160 μm with the PACS instrument onboard the Herschel satellite, as part of the large MESS (Mass loss of Evolved StarS) guaranteed time key program. The images reveal an axisymmetric extended structure with its axis oriented along the space motion of the stars. This extended structure is very likely to be shaped by the interaction of the wind ejected by the AGB star with the surrounding interstellar medium (ISM). As predicted by numerical simulations, the detailed structure of the wind-ISM interface depends upon the relative velocity between star+wind and the ISM, which is large for these two stars (108 and 55 km s-1 for X Her and TX Psc, respectively). In both cases, there is a compact blob upstream whose origin is not fully elucidated, but that could be the signature of some instability in the wind-ISM shock. Deconvolved images of X Her and TX Psc reveal several discrete structures along the outermost filaments, which could be Kelvin-Helmholtz vortices. Finally, TX Psc is surrounded by an almost circular ring (the signature of the termination shock?) that contrasts with the outer, more structured filaments. A similar inner circular structure seems to be present in X Her as well, albeit less clearly.
|
|
| 10. |
- Khouri, T., et al.
(författare)
-
The wind of W Hydrae as seen by Herschel I. The CO envelope
- 2014
-
Ingår i: Astronomy and Astrophysics. - : EDP Sciences. - 0004-6361 .- 1432-0746. ; 561, s. Article no. A5-
-
Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Context. Asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars lose their envelopes by means of a stellar wind whose driving mechanism is not understood well. Characterizing the composition and thermal and dynamical structure of the outflow provides constraints that are essential for understanding AGB evolution, including the rate of mass loss and isotopic ratios. Aims. We characterize the CO emission from the wind of the low mass-loss rate oxygen-rich AGB star W Hya using data obtained by the HIFI, PACS, and SPIRE instruments on board the Herschel Space Observatory and ground-based telescopes. (CO)-C-12 and (CO)-C-13 lines are used to constrain the intrinsic C-12/C-13 ratio from resolved HIFI lines. Methods. We combined a state-of-the-art molecular line emission code and a dust continuum radiative transfer code to model the CO lines and the thermal dust continuum. Results. The acceleration of the outflow up to about 5.5 km s(-1) is quite slow and can be represented by a beta-type velocity law with index beta = 5. Beyond this point, acceleration up the terminal velocity of 7 km s(-1) is faster. Using the J = 10-9, 9-8, and 6-5 transitions, we find an intrinsic C-12/C-13 ratio of 18 +/- 10 for W Hya, where the error bar is mostly due to uncertainties in the (CO)-C-12 abundance and the stellar flux around 4.6 mu m. To match the low-excitation CO lines, these molecules need to be photo-dissociated at similar to 500 stellar radii. The radial dust emission intensity profile of our stellar wind model matches PACS images at 70 mu m out to 20 '' (or 800 stellar radii). For larger radii the observed emission is substantially stronger than our model predicts, indicating that at these locations there is extra material present. Conclusions. The initial slow acceleration of the wind may imply inefficient dust formation or dust driving in the lower part of the envelope. The final injection of momentum in the wind might be the result of an increase in the opacity thanks to the late condensation of dust species. The derived intrinsic isotopologue ratio for W Hya is consistent with values set by the first dredge-up and suggestive of an initial mass of 2 M-circle dot or more. However, the uncertainty in the isotopologic ratio is large, which makes it difficult to set reliable limits on W Hya's main-sequence mass.
|
|
