Evidence for a New Dust Creation Paradigm in Recurrent Novae: Milliarcsecond Resolution Mid-Infrared Observations of RS Ophiuchi

Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astronomy

Scientific paper

Rate now

  [ 0.00 ] – not rated yet Voters 0   Comments 0

Details

Faint Blue Stars, White Dwarfs, Degenerate Stars, Nuclei Of Planetary Nebulae, Astrometric And Interferometric Instruments, Giant And Subgiant Stars

Scientific paper

We report observations of the nova RS Ophiuchi (RS Oph) using the Keck Interferometer Nuller (KIN), approximately 3.8 days following the most recent outburst of 2006 February 12. These observations represent the first scientific results from the KIN, which operates in N-band from 8 to 12.5 μm in a nulling mode. In this mode the stellar light itself is suppressed by a destructive fringe, effectively enhancing the contrast of any nearby (constructive fringe) source, which in this case is the circumstellar material located near the star. By fitting the unique KIN data, we have obtained an angular size of the mid-infrared continuum of 6.2+/-0.6, 4.0+/-0.4, or 5.4+/-0.6 mas for disk, gaussian (FWHM), and shell profiles, respectively. The data show evidence of enhanced neutral atomic hydrogen emission and atomic metals including silicon located in the inner spatial regime (<5 AU) near the white dwarf (WD) relative to the outer regime. There are also nebular emission lines and evidence of hot silicate dust in the outer spatial region, centered at about 17 AU from the WD that are not found in the inner regime. Our evidence suggests that these features have been excited by the nova flash in the outer spatial regime before the blast wave reached these regions, in support a model in which the dust appears to be present between outbursts. The present results are consistent with a unifying model of the system that includes an increase in density in the plane of the orbit of the two stars created by a spiral shock wave caused by the motion of the stars through the cool wind of the red giant star.

No associations

LandOfFree

Say what you really think

Search LandOfFree.com for scientists and scientific papers. Rate them and share your experience with other people.

Rating

Evidence for a New Dust Creation Paradigm in Recurrent Novae: Milliarcsecond Resolution Mid-Infrared Observations of RS Ophiuchi does not yet have a rating. At this time, there are no reviews or comments for this scientific paper.

If you have personal experience with Evidence for a New Dust Creation Paradigm in Recurrent Novae: Milliarcsecond Resolution Mid-Infrared Observations of RS Ophiuchi, we encourage you to share that experience with our LandOfFree.com community. Your opinion is very important and Evidence for a New Dust Creation Paradigm in Recurrent Novae: Milliarcsecond Resolution Mid-Infrared Observations of RS Ophiuchi will most certainly appreciate the feedback.

Rate now

     

Profile ID: LFWR-SCP-O-836097

  Search
All data on this website is collected from public sources. Our data reflects the most accurate information available at the time of publication.