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An Atlas of [N II] and [O III] Images and Spectra of Planetary Nebulae
We present an atlas of Hubble Space Telescope images and ground-based,long-slit, narrowband spectra centered on the 6584 Å line of [NII] and the 5007 Å line of [O III]. The spectra were obtained fora variety of slit positions across each target (as shown on the images)in an effort to account for nonspherical nebular geometries in a robustmanner. We have extended the prolate ellipsoidal shell model originallydevised by Aaquist, Zhang, and Kwok to generate synthetic images, aswell as long-slit spectra. Using this model, we have derived basicparameters for the subsample of PNe that present ellipsoidal appearancesand regular kinematic patterns. We find differences between ourparameters for the target PNe as compared to those of previous studies,which we attribute to increased spatial resolution for our image dataand the inclusion of kinematic data in the model fits. The data andanalysis presented in this paper can be combined with detections ofnebular angular expansion rates to determine precise distances to the PNtargets.
| Molecular and Atomic Excitation Stratification in the Outflow of the Planetary Nebula M27
High-resolution spectroscopy with FUSE and HST STIS of atomic andmolecular velocity stratification in the nebular outflow of M27challenge models of the abundance kinematics in planetary nebulae. Thesimple picture of a very high speed (~1000 km s-1),high-ionization, radiation-driven stellar wind surrounded by a slower(~10 km s-1) mostly molecular outflow, with low-ionizationand neutral atomic species residing at the wind interaction interface,is not supported. Instead, we find vibrationally excited H2intermixed with mostly neutral atomic species at a transition velocity(33 km s-1) between a fast (33-65 km s-1)low-ionization zone and a slow (<~33 km s-1)high-ionization zone. Lyα fluorescence of H2 has beendetected, but far-UV continuum fluorescence has not. The diffuse nebularmedium is inhospitable to molecules and dust. Maintaining a modestequilibrium abundance of H2 [N(H2)/N(HI)<<1] in the diffuse nebular medium requires a source ofH2, mostly likely the clumpy nebular medium. The stellar SEDshows no sign of reddening [E(B-V)<0.01], but paradoxicallyHα/Hβ indicates E(B-V)~0.1. The enhancement ofHα/Hβ in the absence of dust may result from a two-stepprocess of H2 ionization by Lyman continuum photons followedby dissociative recombination [H 2 + γ -->H+2 + e- --> H(1s) + H(nl)], whichultimately produces fluorescence of Hα and Lyα. In theoptically thin limit at the inferred radius of the velocity transition,we find that dissociation of H2 by stellar Lyman continuumphotons is an order of magnitude more efficient than spontaneousdissociation by far-UV photons. The importance of this H2destruction process in H II regions has been overlooked.
| The Problem with Reddening Distances to Planetary Nebulae
It is noted that the vast majority of Galactic PNe are located outsideof the interstellar reddening layer, to the extent that local gradientsin E_{B-V} are low to undetectable. This is likely to invalidate certainprevious estimates of their reddening distances D_{RED}. It also meansthat larger scale analyses, such as those of Pottasch (1984) and Acker(1973), lead to values of D_{RED}] which are significantly too small. Asimilar critique applies to analyses based on measures of Na D-lineabsorption, and it seems likely that most of the distances of Napiwotzki& Schönberner (1995) are similarly in error.
| Three-Dimensional Photoionization Structure and Distances of Planetary Nebulae. III. NGC 6781
Continuing our series of papers on the three-dimensional (3D) structuresof and accurate distances to planetary nebulae (PNe), we present ourstudy of the planetary nebula NGC 6781. For this object, we construct a3D photoionization model and, using the constraints provided byobservational data from the literature, we determine the detailed 3Dstructure of the nebula, the physical parameters of the ionizing source,and the first precise distance. The procedure consists of simultaneouslyfitting all the observed emission-line morphologies, integratedintensities, and the two-dimensional (2D) density map from the [S II]line ratios to the parameters generated by the model, and in aniterative way obtaining the best fit for the central star parameters andthe distance to NGC 6781, obtaining values of 950+/-143 pc and 385Lsolar for the distance and luminosity of the central star,respectively. Using theoretical evolutionary tracks of intermediate andlow-mass stars, we derive the mass of the central star of NGC 6781 andits progenitor to be 0.60+/-0.03 Msolar and 1.5+/-0.5Msolar, respectively.
| Observed Planetary Nebulae as Descendants of Interacting Binary Systems
We examine recent studies on the formation rate of planetary nebulae andfind this rate to be about one-third of the formation rate of whitedwarfs. This implies that only about one-third of all planetary nebulaethat evolve to form white dwarfs are actually bright enough to beobserved. This finding corresponds with the claim that it is necessaryfor a binary companion to interact with the asymptotic giant branchstellar progenitor for the descendant planetary nebulae to be brightenough to be detected. The finding about the formation rate alsostrengthens O. De Marco's conjecture that the majority of observedplanetary nebulae harbor binary systems. In other words, single starsalmost never form observed planetary nebulae.
| The 3-D View of Planetary Nebulae
By taking a 3-D view of Planetary Nebulae (PNe) we show that the largeuncertainties associated with classical methods of modeling andobserving PNe to obtain their 3-D structures, distances and physicalparameters are significantly reduced. Using long slit or Integral FieldUnit spectrophotometry to constrain modern 3-D photoionization modelsfor PNe, we determine detailed 3-D structures, central star parameters,and distances accurate to 10-20% by eliminating the uncertainties in thedensity and filling factor. Traditional 1-D methods gave distances totypically a factor of 3 or more with the associated very largeuncertainties on the physical parameters of the objects.
| Discovery of Lyα-pumped Molecular Hydrogen Emission in the Planetary Nebulae NGC 6853 and NGC 3132
We report the first observation of Lyα pumped molecular hydrogenemission lines in planetary nebulae. The H2 emission observedin the ultraviolet spectra of NGC 6853 and NGC 3132 can be explained byexcitation of vibrationally hot H2 by Lyα photons.Constraints are placed on the nebular Lyα emission profile, aswell as the molecular hydrogen temperature, column density, andturbulent motion. These parameters are similar for the two nebulae,pointing to similar physical conditions in these objects. Therovibrational cascade following Lyα pumping is predicted to havelow surface brightness signatures in the visible and near-infrared.
| The Use of K_S Band Photometric Excesses to Investigate H(2) Emission in Planetary Nebulae
We have determined the distribution of H(2) emission in 14 planetarynebulae (PNe), using imaging and photometry published by the 2MASSinfrared survey. This technique is only applicable under certainstringent conditions, and requires precise broad band photometry, andaccurate spatial registration between the K_S and H band images. It is,in addition, only applicable to certain sources, and excludes outflowsin which central star and grain thermal excesses are appreciable. Ourresults for NGC 3132, NGC 6720, IC 4406 and M 2-9 are closely similar tothose of previous narrow band imaging, and confirm that H(2) emissionis confined to narrow, highly fragmented shells. Similar results areobtained for M 1-7, M 1-8, and M 3-5. Our spatial profiles also confirmthat the emission extends outside of the primary ionised shells. Whereenvelopes are large, and the PNe are more evolved, then the fractionalextensions Deltatheta/$theta appear to be at their smallest. They arealso similar to the radial widths predicted for H(2) abundanceprofiles, and to the values DeltaR/R determined throughmagnetohydrodynamic modelling of shocks. There appears, finally, to beevidence for an evolution in this parameter, such that Deltatheta/$thetavaries with increasing envelope size d(H) as Deltatheta/$theta ~d(H)(-2.2) .
| Chemical abundances in seven galactic planetary nebulae
An observational study of chemical abundances in the galactic planetarynebulae NGC 1535, NGC 2438,NGC 2440, NGC 3132, NGC3242, NGC 6302, and NGC7009 based on long-slit spectra of high signal-to-noise ratioin the 3100 to 6900 Å range is presented. We determined the N, O,Ne, S, and Cl abundances from collisionally excited lines and the He andO++ abundances from recombination lines. TheO++/H+ estimates derived from recombination linesare about a factor of four and two higher than those derived fromforbidden lines for NGC 7009 and NGC3242, respectively. Spatial profiles ofO++/H+ abundance from O II permitted lines andfrom [O III] forbidden lines were obtained for the planetary nebulaNGC 7009. The differences betweenO++/H+ derived from recombination and fromforbidden lines present smooth variations along the nebular surface ofNGC 7009, with the differences decreasing from thecenter to the edges of the nebula. If these abundance differences areexplained by the presence of electron temperature fluctuations,quantified by the parameter t2, a value of aboutt2=0.09 is required for NGC 3242 andNGC 7009.
| Hot dust haloes in planetary nebulae
We point out that many planetary nebulae (PNe) have large infraredindices (H-KS), and that this is likely to result from thepresence of hot grains, and/or H2 S(1) line emission atλ= 2.122μm. We are able to identify two groups of sourcesassociated with each of these mechanisms, both of which appear topossess distinct physical characteristics. One difference between thesegroups concerns the near-infrared dimensions of the sources. It appearsthat hot dust outflows frequently have sizes θ(KS)> θ(H) > θ(J). Four of the sources are particularlyextreme in this regard, and show emission extending well outside of theprimary shells. We propose that this is likely to arise fromhigh-temperature grains located in low-density haloes. The location ofsuch grains at large distances from the central stars represents achallenge for any mechanism purporting to explain this phenomenon. Themost likely explanation appears to be in terms of photon heating of verysmall grains.
| Electron temperature fluctuations in planetary nebulae
An observational study of the spatial variation of the electrontemperature and density in 10 galactic planetary nebulae is presented.The data consist of long-slit spectra of high signal-to-noise ratio inthe 3100 to 6900 Å range. Electron temperatures were determinedfrom the [O III](λ 4959 + λ 5007)/λ 4363 and [NII](λ 6548 + λ 6583)/λ 5755 ratios and from theBalmer discontinuity. Electron densities were estimated from the [SII]λ 6716/λ 6731, [Cl III]λ 5517/λ 5537, and[Ar IV]λ 4711/λ 4740 ratios. Electron temperaturevariations of low amplitude were found across the nebular surface in theplanetary nebulae studied. The temperature distribution across eachnebula presents a variance relative to the mean corresponding to 0.0003≤ t2s(Bal) ≤ 0.0078, 0.0003 ≤t2s(N II) ≤ 0.0097, and 0.0011 ≤t2s(O III) ≤ 0.0050. A systematic spatialvariation of electron density has been detected in most of objects(NGC 1535, NGC 2438, NGC2440, NGC 3132, NGC3242, NGC 6302, NGC6563, and NGC 7009). The remaining objects(NGC 6781 and NGC 6853) have notshown any significant electron density dependence on position.NGC 2438, NGC 6563, NGC6781, and NGC 6853 are in general the mostdiffuse and probably evolved objects studied here, with low meandensities in the range Ne(S II) ≈ 95-158~cm-3.An anti-correlation between temperature and density was found forNGC 2438 and NGC 3132, with theelectron temperature increasing with the decrease of electron densityand a correlation between temperature and density was found forNGC 2440, NGC 3242, NGC6302, and NGC 7009, with the electrontemperature increasing with the increase of electron density. Theserelationships seem to be associated with the structure of the nebula.The nebulae in which the correlation between temperature and density ispresent are ring shaped. The anti-correlation between temperature anddensity is found in bipolar planetary nebulae that are denser in thecentre of the nebula.
| Oxygen Recombination Line Abundances in Gaseous Nebulae
The determination of the heavy element abundances from giantextragalactic H II regions has been generally based on collisionallyexcited lines. We will discuss the reasons to study the characteristicsof recombination lines, and then use these lines to determine chemicalabundances. Of these lines the oxygen (specifically the O II) lines arethe most important; and, of them, the lines of multiplet 1 of O II arethe most accessible. It has often been assumed that by measuring theintensity of a single line within a multiplet the intensities of all thelines in the multiplet can be determined; in recent studies we havefound that the intensity ratios of lines within a multiplet can dependon density; we will present empirical density-intensity relationshipsfor multiplet 1 based on recent observations of H II regions andplanetary nebulae. From observations of H II regions we find that thecritical density for collisional redistribution of the multiplet 1 O IIrecombination lines amounts to 2800+/-500 cm-3. We point out that theO/H recombination abundances of H II regions in the solar vicinity arein excellent agreement with the O/H solar value, while the abundancesderived from collisionally excited lines are not. We present acalibration of Pagel's method in the 8.2 < 12 + log O/H < 8.8range based on O recombination lines.
| Filaments as Possible Signatures of Magnetic Field Structure in Planetary Nebulae
We draw attention to the extreme filamentary structures seen inhigh-resolution optical images of certain planetary nebulae. Wedetermine the physical properties of the filaments in the nebulae IC418, NGC 3132, and NGC 6537, and based on their large length-to-widthratios, longitudinal coherence, and morphology, we suggest that they maybe signatures of the underlying magnetic field. The fields needed forthe coherence of the filaments are probably consistent with thosemeasured in the precursor circumstellar envelopes. The filaments suggestthat magnetic fields in planetary nebulae may have a localized andthreadlike geometry.Based on observations made with the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope,obtained from the data archive at the Space Telescope Institute. STScIis operated by the association of Universities for Research inAstronomy, Inc., under NASA contract NAS 5-26555.
| The mean properties of planetary nebulae as a function of Peimbert class
Planetary nebulae are known to possess a broad range of abundances, andthese (with other characteristics) have been used to define five classesof outflow. Peimbert Type I sources, for instance, possess high N and Heabundances, filamentary structures, and low mean scaleheights above theGalactic plane, whilst those of Type III have much lower abundances,high peculiar velocities, and belong to the Galactic thick disc. Apartfrom some rather ill-defined indications, however, very little is knownconcerning their mean physical, spatial, structural, kinematic andthermal characteristics.We have performed a comprehensive study of all of these properties, andfind evidence for strong variations between the various Peimbertclasses. Certain of these differences are consistent with Type I sourceshaving the highest progenitor masses, although it seems that thesenebulae also possess the lowest rms densities and 5-GHz brightnesstemperatures. The latter results are in conflict with a range of recentmodelling.
| Helium recombination spectra as temperature diagnostics for planetary nebulae
Electron temperatures derived from the HeI recombination line ratios,designated Te(HeI), are presented for 48 planetary nebulae(PNe). We study the effect that temperature fluctuations inside nebulaehave on the Te(HeI) value. We show that a comparison betweenTe(HeI) and the electron temperature derived from the Balmerjump of the HI recombination spectrum, designated Te(HI),provides an opportunity to discriminate between the paradigms of achemically homogeneous plasma with temperature and density variations,and a two-abundance nebular model with hydrogen-deficient materialembedded in diffuse gas of a `normal' chemical composition (i.e.~solar), as the possible causes of the dichotomy between the abundancesthat are deduced from collisionally excited lines and those deduced fromrecombination lines. We find that Te(HeI) values aresignificantly lower than Te(HI) values, with an averagedifference of = 4000 K. Theresult is consistent with the expectation of the two-abundance nebularmodel but is opposite to the prediction of the scenarios of temperaturefluctuations and/or density inhomogeneities. From the observeddifference between Te(HeI) and Te(HI), we estimatethat the filling factor of hydrogen-deficient components has a typicalvalue of 10-4. In spite of its small mass, the existence ofhydrogen-deficient inclusions may potentially have a profound effect inenhancing the intensities of HeI recombination lines and thereby lead toapparently overestimated helium abundances for PNe.
| Recombination Line versus Forbidden Line Abundances in Planetary Nebulae
Recombination lines (RLs) of C II, N II, and O II in planetary nebulae(PNs) have been found to give abundances that are much larger in somecases than abundances from collisionally excited forbidden lines (CELs).The origins of this abundance discrepancy are highly debated. We presentnew spectroscopic observations of O II and C II recombination lines forsix planetary nebulae. With these data we compare the abundances derivedfrom the optical recombination lines with those determined fromcollisionally excited lines. Combining our new data with publishedresults on RLs in other PNs, we examine the discrepancy in abundancesderived from RLs and CELs. We find that there is a wide range in themeasured abundance discrepancyΔ(O+2)=logO+2(RL)-logO+2(CEL),ranging from approximately 0.1 dex (within the 1 σ measurementerrors) up to 1.4 dex. This tends to rule out errors in therecombination coefficients as a source of the discrepancy. Most RLsyield similar abundances, with the notable exception of O II multipletV15, known to arise primarily from dielectronic recombination, whichgives abundances averaging 0.6 dex higher than other O II RLs. Wecompare Δ(O+2) against a variety of physical propertiesof the PNs to look for clues as to the mechanism responsible for theabundance discrepancy. The strongest correlations are found with thenebula diameter and the Balmer surface brightness; high surfacebrightness, compact PNs show small values of Δ(O+2),while large low surface brightness PNs show the largest discrepancies.An inverse correlation of Δ(O+2) with nebular densityis also seen. A marginal correlation of Δ(O+2) is foundwith expansion velocity. No correlations are seen with electrontemperature, He+2/He+, central star effectivetemperature and luminosity, stellar mass-loss rate, or nebularmorphology. Similar results are found for carbon in comparing C II RLabundances with ultraviolet measurements of C III].
| Physical conditions in Photo-Dissociation Regions around Planetary Nebulae
We present observations of the infrared fine-structure lines of [Si II](34.8 μm), [O I] (63.2 and 145.5 μm) and [C II] (157.7 μm)obtained with the ISO SWS and LWS spectrographs of nine PlanetaryNebulae (PNe). These lines originate in the Photo-Dissociation Regions(PDRs) associated with the nebulae and provide useful information on theevolution and excitation conditions of the ejected material in theseregions. In order to interpret the observations, the measured lineintensities have been compared with those predicted byphoto-dissociation models. This comparison has been done taking intoaccount the C/O content in the nebulae. The densities derived with thiscomparison show a large scatter for some nebulae, probably because thedensity is higher than the critical density. Therefore, they are nolonger sensitive to this parameter implying that transitions from otherspecies with higher critical density should be used. The possiblecontribution of shocks to the observed emission characteristics of thesePNe is briefly discussed and it is shown that the radiation field is themain driving force responsible for the atomic lines in the PNe that havebeen studied. In addition, data on the pure rotational lines ofH2 in three nebulae (NGC 7027, NGC 6302 and Hb 5) are alsopresented. Assuming local thermal equilibrium the rotational temperatureand densities have been derived. We have derived the mass of atomic gasin the PDR associated with these PNe and compared those to ionic massesderived from Hβ and molecular masses derived from low J COobservations. This comparison shows that for these nebulae, the PDR isthe main reservoir of gas surrounding these objects. A comparison of theresults of these evolved PNe with very young PNe from the literaturesuggests that as the nebula ages the relative amount of ionic gasincreases at the expense of the atomic and molecular mass.Based on observations with ISO, an ESA project with instruments fundedby ESA Member States (especially the PI countries: France, Germany, TheNetherlands and the UK) and with the participation of ISAS and NASA.Table 1 is only available in electronic form at the CDS via anonymousftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or via http: / /cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/431/523
| Identification and Characterization of Faint Emission Lines in the Spectrum of the Planetary Nebula IC 418
We present high signal-to-noise ratio echelle spectra of the compacthigh surface brightness, low-ionization planetary nebula (PN) IC 418.These reveal 807 emission lines down to intensities less than10-5 that of Hβ for which we determine widths andrelative intensities. We show that line profiles are a valuableparameter for making line identifications and in constraining theexcitation mechanism of the lines. We present evidence that indicatesthat many supposed high-level recombination lines may in fact be excitedby a process other than recombination. We contend from the detection ofdielectronic recombination lines that their relatively low intensitiesargue against their making a significant contribution to levelpopulations of the heavy ions in this object. Following similar analysesof other PNe we find that IC 418 shows a small discrepancy in ionabundances derived from forbidden versus recombination lines of theheavy elements.
| Chemical abundances of planetary nebulae from optical recombination lines - II. Abundances derived from collisionally excited lines and optical recombination lines
In Paper I, we presented spectrophotometric measurements of emissionlines from the ultraviolet (UV) to the far-infrared for 12 Galacticplanetary nebulae (PNe) and derived nebular thermal and densitystructures using a variety of plasma diagnostics. The measurements andplasma diagnostic results are used in the current paper to determineelemental abundances in these nebulae. Abundance analyses are carriedout using both strong collisionally excited lines (CELs) and weakoptical recombination lines (ORLs) from heavy element ions.Assuming electron temperatures and densities derived from HIrecombination spectra (line and continuum), we are able to determine theORL C abundance relative to hydrogen for all the PNe in our sample, Nand O abundances for 11 of them and Ne abundances for nine of them. Inall cases, ORL abundances are found to be systematically higher than thecorresponding values deduced from CELs. In NGC 40, the discrepancybetween the abundances derived from the two types of emission linereaches a factor of 17 for oxygen. For the other 10 PNe, thediscrepancies for oxygen vary from 1.6 to 3.1. In general, collisionallyexcited infrared fine-structure lines, which have excitation energiesless than 103 K and consequently emissivities that areinsensitive to electron temperature and temperature fluctuations, yieldionic abundances comparable to those derived from optical/UV CELs. For agiven nebula, the discrepancies between the ORL and CEL abundances areof similar magnitude for different elements. In other words, relativeabundance ratios such as C/O, N/O and Ne/O deduced from the traditionalmethod based on strong CELs are comparable to those yielded by ORLs, fora wide range of ORL to CEL oxygen abundance ratios, varying from nearunity to over a factor of 20.We have also determined ORL abundances relative to hydrogen for thethird-row element magnesium for 11 nebulae in our sample. In strongcontrast to the cases for second-row elements, Mg abundances derivedfrom the MgII 3d-4f λ4481 ORL are nearly constant for all the PNeanalysed so far and agree within the uncertainties with the solarphotospheric value.In accordance with results from previous studies, the ORL to CELabundance ratio is correlated with the difference between the electrontemperatures derived from the [OIII] forbidden-line ratio, on the onehand, and from the hydrogen recombination Balmer discontinuity, on theother. We find that the discrepancy between the ORL and CEL abundancesis correlated with nebular absolute diameter, surface brightness, theelectron density derived from [SII] CELs, and excitation class. Theresults confirm that the dichotomy of temperatures and heavy elementalabundances determined from the two types of emission line, which hasbeen widely observed in PNe, is a strong function of nebular evolution,as first pointed out by Garnett and Dinerstein.Our analyses show that temperature fluctuations and/or densityinhomogeneities are incapable of explaining the large discrepanciesbetween the heavy elemental abundances and electron temperaturesdetermined from the two types of emission line. Our analyses support thebi-abundance model of Liu et al., who have proposed that PNe containanother previously unseen component of ionized gas which, highlyenriched in heavy elements, has an electron temperature of<~103 K and emits strongly in recombination lines but notin CELs. Our determinations of low average emission temperatures fromthe observed line intensity ratios of HeI and OII ORLs lend furthersupport to this scenario.
| A deep survey of heavy element lines in planetary nebulae - II. Recombination-line abundances and evidence for cold plasma
In our Paper I, we presented deep optical observations of the spectra of12 Galactic planetary nebulae (PNe) and three Magellanic Cloud PNe,carrying out an abundance analysis using the collisionally excitedforbidden lines. Here, we analyse the relative intensities of faintoptical recombination lines (ORLs) from ions of carbon, nitrogen andoxygen in order to derive the abundances of these ions relative tohydrogen. The relative intensities of four high-l CII recombinationlines with respect to the well-known 3d-4f λ4267 line are foundto be in excellent agreement with the predictions of recombinationtheory, removing uncertainties about whether the high C2+abundances derived from the λ4267 line could be due tonon-recombination enhancements of its intensity.We define an abundance discrepancy factor (ADF) as the ratio of theabundance derived for a heavy element ion from its recombination linesto that derived for the same ion from its ultraviolet, optical orinfrared collisionally excited lines (CELs). All of the PNe in oursample are found to have ADFs that exceed unity. Two of the PNe, NGC2022 and LMC N66, have O2+ ADFs of 16 and 11, respectively,while the remaining 13 PNe have a mean O2+ ADF of 2.6, withthe smallest value being 1.8.Garnett and Dinerstein found that for a sample of about 12 PNe themagnitude of the O2+ ADF was inversely correlated with thenebular Balmer line surface brightness. We have investigated this for alarger sample of 20 PNe, finding weak correlations with decreasingsurface brightness for the ADFs of O2+ and C2+.The C2+ ADFs are well correlated with the absolute radii ofthe nebulae, although no correlation is present for the O2+ADFs. We also find both the C2+ and O2+ ADFs to bestrongly correlated with the magnitude of the difference between thenebular [OIII] and Balmer jump electron temperatures (ΔT),corroborating a result of Liu et al. for the O2+ ADF.ΔT is found to be weakly correlated with decreasing nebularsurface brightness and increasing absolute nebular radius.There is no dependence of the magnitude of the ADF upon the excitationenergy of the ultraviolet, optical or infrared CEL transition used,indicating that classical nebular temperature fluctuations - i.e. in achemically homogeneous medium - are not the cause of the observedabundance discrepancies. Instead, we conclude that the main cause of thediscrepancy is enhanced ORL emission from cold ionized gas located inhydrogen-deficient clumps inside the main body of the nebulae, as firstpostulated by Liu et al. for the high-ADF PN, NGC 6153. We havedeveloped a new electron temperature diagnostic, based upon the relativeintensities of the OII 4f-3d λ4089 and 3p-3s λ4649recombination transitions. For six out of eight PNe for which bothtransitions are detected, we derive O2+ ORL electrontemperatures of <=300 K, very much less than the O2+forbidden-line and H+ Balmer jump temperatures derived forthe same nebulae. These results provide direct observational evidencefor the presence of cold plasma regions within the nebulae, consistentwith gas cooled largely by infrared fine-structure transitions; at suchlow temperatures, recombination transition intensities will besignificantly enhanced due to their inverse power-law temperaturedependence, while ultraviolet and optical CELs will be significantlysuppressed.
| Infrared Array Camera (IRAC) Observations of Planetary Nebulae
We present the initial results from the Infrared Array Camera (IRAC)imaging survey of planetary nebulae (PNs). The IRAC colors of PNs arered, especially in the 8.0 μm band. Emission in this band is likelydue to contributions from two strong H2 lines and a [Ar III]line in that bandpass. IRAC is sensitive to the emission in the halos aswell as in the ionized regions that are optically bright. In NGC 246, wehave observed an unexpected ring of emission in the 5.8 and 8.0 μmIRAC bands not seen previously at other wavelengths. In NGC 650 and NGC3132, the 8.0 μm emission is at larger distances from the centralstar compared to the optical and other IRAC bands, possibly related tothe H2 emission in that band and the tendency for themolecular material to exist outside of the ionized zones. In theflocculi of the outer halo of NGC 6543, however, this trend is reversed,with the 8.0 μm emission bright on the inner edges of the structures.This may be related to the emission mechanism, where the H2is possibly excited in shocks in the NGC 6543 halo, whereasH2 emission is likely fluorescently excited in the UV fieldsnear the central star.
| Three-Dimensional Photoionization Structure and Distances of Planetary Nebulae. I. NGC 6369
We present the results of mapping the planetary nebula NGC 6369 by usingmultiple long-slit spectra taken with the Cerro Tololo Inter-AmericanObservatory 1.5 m telescope. We create two-dimensional emission-lineimages from our spectra and use these to derive fluxes for 17 lines, theHα/Hβ extinction map, the [S II ] line ratio density map, andthe [N II] temperature map of the nebula. We use our photoionizationcode constrained by these data to determine the distance and theionizing star characteristics and to show that a clumpy hourglass shapeis the most likely three-dimensional structure for NGC 6369. Note thatour knowledge of the nebular structure eliminates all uncertaintiesassociated with classical distance determinations, and our method can beapplied to any spatially resolved emission-line nebula. We use thecentral star, nebular emission line, and optical+IR luminosities to showthat NGC 6369 is matter bound, as about 70% of the Lyman continuum fluxescapes. Using recent evolutionary tracks from Blöcker, we derive acentral star mass of about 0.65 Msolar.
| The distances of Type I planetary nebulae
The distances D of planetary nebulae (PNe) are still extremelyuncertain. Although a variety of methods have been used to evaluate thisparameter, these are often in conflict, and subject to large random andsystematic errors. It is therefore important to evaluate D using as manyindependent procedures as possible. We outline here one further way inwhich this parameter may be assessed. It is noted that where the nebularmass range is narrow, then one might expect observed PNe radii to beroughly similar. This, where it occurs, would also result in acorrelation between their angular diameters Θ, and distances D.We find that just such a trend occurs for Type I nebulae, and we employthis to determine distances to a further 44 such outflows. Our meanvalues of D appear similar to those of Zhang [ApJS 98 (1995) 659],implying a relatively long PNe distance scale.
| 12C/13C Ratio in Planetary Nebulae from the IUE Archives
We investigated the abundance ratio of 12C/13C inplanetary nebulae by examining emission lines arising from C III2s2p3Po2,1,0-->2s21S0.Spectra were retrieved from the International Ultraviolet Explorerarchives, and multiple spectra of the same object were co-added toachieve improved signal-to-noise ratio. The 13C hyperfinestructure line at 1909.6 Å was detected in NGC 2440. The12C/13C ratio was found to be ~4.4+/-1.2. In allother objects, we provide an upper limit for the flux of the 1910Å line. For 23 of these sources, a lower limit for the12C/13C ratio was established. The impact on ourcurrent understanding of stellar evolution is discussed. The resultinghigh-signal-to-noise ratio C III spectrum helps constrain the atomicphysics of the line formation process. Some objects have the measured1907/1909 Å flux ratio outside the low-electron densitytheoretical limit for 12C. A mixture of 13C with12C helps to close the gap somewhat. Nevertheless, someobserved 1907/1909 Å flux ratios still appear too high to conformto the currently predicted limits. It is shown that this limit, as wellas the 1910/1909 Å flux ratio, are predominantly influenced byusing the standard partitioning among the collision strengths for themultiplet1S0-3PoJaccording to the statistical weights. A detailed calculation for thefine-structure collision strengths between these individual levels wouldbe valuable.
| A deep survey of heavy element lines in planetary nebulae - I. Observations and forbidden-line densities, temperatures and abundances
We present deep optical spectrophotometry of 12 Galactic planetarynebulae (PNe) and three Magellanic Cloud PNe. Nine of the Galactic PNewere observed by scanning the slit of the spectrograph across thenebula, yielding relative line intensities for the entire nebula thatare suitable for comparison with integrated nebular fluxes measured inother wavelength regions. In this paper we use the fluxes ofcollisionally excited lines (CELs) from the nebulae to derive electrondensities and temperatures, and ionic abundances. We find that thenebular electron densities derived from optical CEL ratios aresystematically higher than those derived from the ratios of the infrared(IR) fine-structure (FS) lines of [OIII]. The latter have lower criticaldensities than the typical nebular electron densities derived fromoptical CELs, indicating the presence of significant density variationswithin the nebulae, with the IR CELs being biased towards lower densityregions.We find that for several nebulae the electron temperatures obtained from[OII] and [NII] optical CELs are significantly affected by recombinationexcitation of one or more of the CELs. When allowance is made forrecombination excitation, much better agreement is obtained with theelectron temperatures obtained from optical [OIII] lines. We alsocompare electron temperatures obtained from the ratio of optical nebularto auroral [OIII] lines with temperatures obtained from the ratio of[OIII] optical lines to [OIII] IR FS lines. We find that when the latterare derived using electron densities based on the [OIII]52 μm/88μm line ratio, they yield values that are significantly higher thanthe optical [OIII] electron temperatures. In contrast to this, [OIII]optical/IR temperatures derived using the higher electron densitiesobtained from optical [ClIII]λ5517/λ5537 ratios show muchcloser agreement with optical [OIII] electron temperatures, implyingthat the observed [OIII] optical/IR ratios are significantly weighted bydensities in excess of the critical densities of both [OIII] FS lines.Consistent with this, ionic abundances derived from [OIII] and [NIII] FSlines using electron densities from optical CELs show much betteragreement with abundances derived for the same ions from optical andultraviolet CELs than do abundances derived from the FS lines using thelower electron densities obtained from the observed [OIII]52 μm/88μm ratios. The behaviour of these electron temperatures, obtainedmaking use of the temperature-insensitive [OIII] IR FS lines, providesno support for significant temperature fluctuations within the nebulaebeing responsible for derived Balmer jump electron temperatures that arelower than temperatures obtained from the much more temperaturesensitive [OIII] optical lines.
| UV Observations of Neutron Capture Elements in Planetary Nebulae
We present results from a search through existing Far UltravioletSpectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) and HST data for neutron capture speciesin planetary nebulae (PNe), which can be enriched by slow neutroncapture (the s-process) in the progenitor stars. Measurements of suchenrichments shed light on the s-process in AGB stars and the heavyelement enrichment of the interstellar medium. We derive Ge (Z=32)abundances relative to S or Fe from observations of Ge III lambda1088.46 for five PNe; four of these exhibit Ge abundances elevated by afactor of >3-10 above solar, depending on assumptions about depletioninto dust. In contrast, we find an approximately solar abundance for Gein IC 4776, and also in the ISM towards Abell 36 as derived from Ge IIlambda 1237.06. Another neutron-capture element, Ga (Z = 31), isprobably detected in SwSt 1 via Ga III lambda 1495.05, with a strengthindicating a greatly enhanced Ga abundance. The strongest evidence forenrichment of Ge is seen for PNe with H-deficient, C-rich Wolf-Rayetcentral stars. While the evolutionary path producing a [WR] central staris not well understood at present, these objects are likely to haveexperienced extensive mixing and dredge-up of nuclear-processedmaterial.
| Planetary Nebulae with H[2] Emission
We review the emission of molecular hydrogen (H[2]) in planetary nebulae(PNe) and we discuss the association between this emission and thebipolar morphology of the objects. We describe the energy levels of thehydrogen molecule, the main excitation mechanisms (shocks andfluorescence) and the ways of discrimination between the differentexcitation mechanisms. We propose another way of identification of theexcitation mechanism based on H[2] kinematical studies. We presentpreliminary results of the H[2] kinematics we are conducting on a sampleof five bipolar PNe. By means of this study we are able of identifyingshocks as the main excitation mechanism of the H[2] emission lines inthese objects. We have also estimated the masses of the H[2] gas inthese PNe and the result implies that the progenitor's masses of theseobjects are larger than those of typical PNe progenitors.
| The relation between Zanstra temperature and morphology in planetary nebulae
We have created a master list of Zanstra temperatures for 373 galacticplanetary nebulae based upon a compilation of 1575 values taken from thepublished literature. These are used to evaluate mean trends intemperature for differing nebular morphologies. Among the most prominentresults of this analysis is the tendency forη=TZ(HeII)/TZ(HeI) to increase with nebularradius, a trend which is taken to arise from the evolution of shelloptical depths. We find that as many as 87 per cent of nebulae may beoptically thin to H ionizing radiation where radii exceed ~0.16 pc. Wealso note that the distributions of values η and TZ(HeII)are quite different for circular, elliptical and bipolar nebulae. Acomparison of observed temperatures with theoretical H-burning trackssuggests that elliptical and circular sources arise from progenitorswith mean mass ≅ 1 Msolar(although the elliptical progenitors are probably more massive).Higher-temperature elliptical sources are likely to derive fromprogenitors with mass ≅2 Msolar, however, implying thatthese nebulae (at least) are associated with a broad swathe ofprogenitor masses. Such a conclusion is also supported by trends in meangalactic latitude. It is found that higher-temperature ellipticalsources have much lower mean latitudes than those with smallerTZ(HeII), a trend which is explicable where there is anincrease in with increasing TZ(HeII).This latitude-temperature variation also applies for most other sources.Bipolar nebulae appear to have mean progenitor masses ≅2.5Msolar, whilst jets, Brets and other highly collimatedoutflows are associated with progenitors at the other end of the massrange (~ 1 Msolar). Indeed it ispossible, given their large mean latitudes and low peak temperatures,that the latter nebulae are associated with the lowest-mass progenitorsof all.The present results appear fully consistent with earlier analyses basedupon nebular scale heights, shell abundances and the relativeproportions of differing morphologies, and offer further evidence for alink between progenitor mass and morphology.
| Galactic Planetary Nebulae and their central stars. I. An accurate and homogeneous set of coordinates
We have used the 2nd generation of the Guide Star Catalogue (GSC-II) asa reference astrometric catalogue to compile the positions of 1086Galactic Planetary Nebulae (PNe) listed in the Strasbourg ESO Catalogue(SEC), its supplement and the version 2000 of the Catalogue of PlanetaryNebulae. This constitutes about 75% of all known PNe. For these PNe, theones with a known central star (CS) or with a small diameter, we havederived coordinates with an absolute accuracy of ~0\farcs35 in eachcoordinate, which is the intrinsic astrometric precision of the GSC-II.For another 226, mostly extended, objects without a GSC-II counterpartwe give coordinates based on the second epoch Digital Sky Survey(DSS-II). While these coordinates may have systematic offsets relativeto the GSC-II of up to 5 arcsecs, our new coordinates usually representa significant improvement over the previous catalogue values for theselarge objects. This is the first truly homogeneous compilation of PNepositions over the whole sky and the most accurate one available so far.The complete Table \ref{tab2} is only available in electronic form atthe CDS via anonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/cgi-bin/qcat?J/A+A/408/1029}
| Angular dimensions of planetary nebulae
We have measured angular dimensions of 312 planetary nebulae from theirimages obtained in Hα (or Hα + [NII]). We have appliedthree methods of measurements: direct measurements at the 10% level ofthe peak surface brightness, Gaussian deconvolution and second-momentdeconvolution. The results from the three methods are compared andanalysed. We propose a simple deconvolution of the 10% levelmeasurements which significantly improves the reliability of thesemeasurements for compact and partially resolved nebulae. Gaussiandeconvolution gives consistent but somewhat underestimated diameterscompared to the 10% measurements. Second-moment deconvolution givesresults in poor agreement with those from the other two methods,especially for poorly resolved nebulae. From the results of measurementsand using the conclusions of our analysis we derive the final nebulardiameters which should be free from systematic differences between small(partially resolved) and extended (well resolved) objects in our sample.Table 1 is only available in electronic form athttp://www.edpsciences.org
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