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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.
| 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.
| 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.
| A reexamination of electron density diagnostics for ionized gaseous nebulae
We present a comparison of electron densities derived from opticalforbidden line diagnostic ratios for a sample of over a hundred nebulae.We consider four density indicators, the [O II]λ3729/λ3726, [S II] λ6716/λ6731, [Cl III]λ5517/λ5537 and [Ar IV] λ4711/λ4740 doubletratios. Except for a few H II regions for which data from the literaturewere used, diagnostic line ratios were derived from our own high qualityspectra. For the [O II] λ3729/λ3726 doublet ratio, we findthat our default atomic data set, consisting of transition probabilitiesfrom Zeippen (\cite{zeippen1982}) and collision strengths from Pradhan(\cite{pradhan}), fit the observations well, although at high electrondensities, the [O II] doublet ratio yields densities systematicallylower than those given by the [S II] λ6716/λ6731 doubletratio, suggesting that the ratio of transition probabilities of the [OII] doublet, A(λ3729)/A(λ3726), given by Zeippen(\cite{zeippen1982}) may need to be revised upwards by approximately 6per cent. Our analysis also shows that the more recent calculations of[O II] transition probabilities by Zeippen (\cite{zeippen1987a}) andcollision strengths by McLaughlin & Bell (\cite{mclaughlin}) areinconsistent with the observations at the high and low density limits,respectively, and can therefore be ruled out. We confirm the earlierresult of Copetti & Writzl (\cite{copetti2002}) that the [O II]transition probabilities calculated by Wiese et al. (\cite{wiese}) yieldelectron densities systematically lower than those deduced from the [SII] λ6716/λ6731 doublet ratio and that the discrepancy ismost likely caused by errors in the transition probabilities calculatedby Wiese et al. (\cite{wiese}). Using our default atomic data set for [OII], we find that Ne([O II]) Ne([S II]) ≈Ne([Cl III])< Ne([Ar IV]).
| 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.
| Planetary nebula distances re-examined: an improved statistical scale
The distances of planetary nebulae (PNe) are still quite uncertain.Although observational estimates are available for a small proportion ofPNe, based on statistical parallax and the like, such distances are verypoorly determined for the majority of galactic PNe. In particular,estimates of so-called `statistical' distance appear to differ byfactors of ~2.7.We point out that there is a well-defined correlation between the 5-GHzluminosity of the sources, L5, and their brightnesstemperatures, TB. This represents a different trend to thoseinvestigated in previous statistical analyses, and permits us todetermine independent distances to a further 449 outflows. Thesedistances are shown to be closely comparable to those determined using aTB-R correlation, providing that the latter trend is taken tobe non-linear.This non-linearity in the TB-R plane has not been noted inprevious analyses, and is likely responsible for the broad (andconflicting) ranges of distance that have previously been published.Finally, we point out that there is a close accord between observedtrends within the L5-TB and TB-Rplanes, and the variation predicted through nebular evolutionarymodelling. This is used to suggest that observational biases areprobably modest, and that our revised distance scale is reasonablytrustworthy.
| Sulfur, Chlorine, and Argon Abundances in Planetary Nebulae. IV. Synthesis and the Sulfur Anomaly
We have compiled a large sample of O, Ne, S, Cl, and Ar abundances thathave been determined for 85 Galactic planetary nebulae in a consistentand homogeneous manner using spectra extending from 3600 to 9600Å. Sulfur abundances have been computed using the near-IR lines of[S III] λλ9069, 9532 along with [S III] temperatures. Wefind average values, expressed logarithmically with a standarddeviation, of log(S/O)=-1.91+/-0.24, log(Cl/O)=-3.52+/-0.16, andlog(Ar/O)=-2.29+/-0.18, numbers consistent with previous studies of bothplanetary nebulae and H II regions. We also find a strong correlationbetween [O III] and [S III] temperatures among planetary nebulae. Inanalyzing abundances of Ne, S, Cl, and Ar with respect to O, we find atight correlation for Ne-O, and loose correlations for Cl-O and Ar-O.All three trends appear to be colinear with observed correlations for HII regions. S and O also show a correlation, but there is a definiteoffset from the behavior exhibited by H II regions and stars. We suggestthat this S anomaly is most easily explained by the existence ofS+3, whose abundance must be inferred indirectly when onlyoptical spectra are available, in amounts in excess of what is predictedby model-derived ionization correction factors in PNe. Finally for thedisk PNe, abundances of O, Ne, S, Cl, and Ar all show gradients whenplotted against Galactocentric distance. The slopes are statisticallyindistinguishable from one another, a result which is consistent withthe notion that the cosmic abundances of these elements evolve inlockstep.
| Physical Conditions of the Planetary Nebula NGC 5315 Derived from VLT Echelle Observations and the t2 Problem
Echelle spectrophotometry of the planetary nebula NGC 5315 is presented.The data consist of VLT UVES observations in the 3100-10450 Årange. The intensities of 556 emission lines have been measured,including 508 identified permitted lines of H0,He0, C0, C+, N0,N+, N++, O0, O+,Ne0, Ne+, Mg+, Si+,S0, S+, S++, and Ar+.Electron temperatures and densities have been determined using manydifferent line intensity ratios. The He+, C++,N++, O++, and Ne++ ionic abundanceshave been derived from recombination lines; these abundances are almostindependent of the temperature structure of the nebula. Alternatively,abundances from collisionally excited lines have been derived for alarge number of ions of different elements; these abundances dependstrongly on the temperature structure. Accurate t2 valueshave been derived from the He I lines, and by comparing theO++ ionic abundances obtained from collisionally excited andrecombination lines. The similarity between the widths and radialvelocities of the O II and the [O III] lines rules out the presence ofchemical abundance inhomogeneities in this object. The chemicalcomposition of NGC 5315 is compared with those of the Orion nebula andthe Sun.Based on observations collected at the European Southern Observatory,Chile, proposal number ESO 68.C-0149(A).
| 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.
| Very Large Telescope Echelle Spectrophotometry of the Planetary Nebula NGC 5307 and Temperature Variations
Echelle spectrophotometry of the planetary nebula NGC 5307 is presented.The data consist of Very Large Telescope Ultraviolet Visual EchelleSpectrograph observations in the 3100-10360 Å range. Electrontemperatures and densities have been determined using different lineintensity ratios. We determine the H, He, C, and O abundances based onrecombination lines; these abundances are almost independent of thetemperature structure of the nebula. We also determine the N, O, Ne, S,Cl, and Ar abundances based on collisionally excited lines; the ratiosof these abundances relative to that of H depend strongly on thetemperature structure of the nebula. From the O II/[O III] lineintensity ratios we find a t2=0.056+/-0.005. The chemicalcomposition of NGC 5307 is compared with those of the Sun and the OrionNebula. From the study of the relative intensities of the O IIrecombination lines of multiplet 1 in this and other nebulae, it isfound that for electron densities smaller than about 5000cm-3 collisional redistribution is not complete; this effecthas to be taken into account to derive the O abundances for those casesin which not all the lines of the multiplet are observed. From the O IIλ4649 versus Ne(Cl III) diagram we find a criticalelectron density of 1325 cm-3 for collisional redistributionof the O II lines of multiplet 1. Based on this diagram, we also arguethat the O II and the [O III] lines originate in the same regions. Wealso find that the radial velocities and the FWHM of the O II and [OIII] lines in NGC 5307 are similar, supporting the previous result.These two results imply that for NGC 5307 and probably for many othergaseous nebulae chemical inhomogeneities are not responsible for thelarge temperature fluctuations observed.Based on observations collected at the European Southern Observatory,Chile, proposal ESO 68.C-0149(A).
| 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
| Sulfur, Chlorine, and Argon Abundances in Planetary Nebulae. IIB. Abundances in a Southern Sample
We have undertaken a large spectroscopic survey of over 80 planetarynebulae with the goal of providing a homogeneous spectroscopic databasebetween 3600 and 9600 Å, as well as a set of consistentlydetermined abundances, especially for oxygen, sulfur, chlorine, andargon. In the current paper we calculate and report the S/O, Cl/O, andAr/O abundance ratios for 45 southern planetary nebulae (predominantlytype II), using our own recently observed line strengths published in acompanion paper. One of the salient features of our work is the use ofthe near-IR lines of [S III] λλ9069, 9532 coupled with the[S III] temperature, to determine the S+2 ionic abundance. Wefind the following average abundances for these objects:S/O=0.011+/-0.0064, Cl/O=0.00031+/-0.00012, and Ar/O=0.0051+/-0.0020.
| Sulfur, Chlorine, and Argon in Planetary Nebulae. IIA. Observations of a Southern Sample
In this paper we present fully reduced and dereddened emission linestrengths for a sample of 45 southern type II planetary nebulae(PNs).The spectrophotometry for these PNs covers an extendedoptical/near-IR range from 3600 to 9600 Å. This PN study andsubsequent analysis (presented in a companion paper), together with asimilar treatment for a northern PN sample, is aimed at addressing thelack of homogeneous, consistently observed, reduced, and analyzed datasets that include the near-IR [S III] lines at 9069 and 9532 Å.The use of type II objects only is intended to select disk nebulae thatare uncontaminated by nucleosynthetic products of the progenitor star.Extending spectra redward to include the strong [S III] lines enables usto look for consistency between S+2 abundances inferred fromthese lines and from the more accessible, albeit weaker, [S III] line atλ6312.
| Helium contamination from the progenitor stars of planetary nebulae: The He/H radial gradient and the ΔY / ΔZ enrichment ratio
In this work, two aspects of the chemical evolution of 4He inthe Galaxy are considered on the basis of a sample of disk planetarynebulae (PN). First, an application of corrections owing to thecontamination of 4He from the evolution of the progenitorstars shows that the He/H abundance by number of atoms is reduced by0.012 to 0.015 in average, leading to an essentially flat He/H radialdistribution. Second, a determination of the helium to heavy elementenrichment ratio using the same corrections leads to values in the range2.8 < ΔY / ΔZ < 3.6 for Y p = 0.23 and 2.0< ΔY / ΔZ < 2.8 for Y p = 0.24, in goodagreement with recent independent determinations and theoretical models.
| The distance scale of planetary nebulae
By collecting distances from the literature, a set of 73 planetarynebulae with mean distances of high accuracy is derived. This sample isused for recalibration of the mass-radius relationship, used by manystatistical distance methods. An attempt to correct for a statisticalpeculiarity, where errors in the distances influences the mass-radiusrelationship by increasing its slope, has been made for the first time.Distances to PNe in the Galactic Bulge, derived by this new method aswell as other statistical methods from the last decade, are then usedfor the evaluation of these methods as distance indicators. In order ofachieving a Bulge sample that is free from outliers we derive newcriteria for Bulge membership. These criteria are much more stringentthan those used hitherto, in the sense that they also discriminateagainst background objects. By splitting our Bulge sample in two, onewith optically thick (small) PNe and one with optically thin (large)PNe, we find that our calibration is of higher accuracy than most othercalibrations. Differences between the two subsamples, we believe, aredue to the incompleteness of the Bulge sample, as well as the dominanceof optical diameters in the ``thin'' sample and radio diameters in the``thick'' sample. Our final conclusion is that statistical methods givedistances that are at least as accurate as the ones obtained from manyindividual methods. Also, the ``long'' distance scale of Galactic PNe isconfirmed.
| Gravity distances of planetary nebulae II. Aplication to a sample of galactic objects.
Not Available
| IUE Spectra and Emission-Line Fluxes for Eight Planetary Nebulae
We present IUE spectra and observed emission-line fluxes for theplanetary nebulae NGC 2438, NGC 2610, NGC 5307, NGC 6620, NGC 7354,K3-27, PB 8, and He 2-182. All data have been processed by the finalarchive NEWSIPS routines. PB 8 and He 2-182 display strong C IVλ1549 P Cygni profiles from which terminal wind velocities of-2835+/-500 km s-1 and -2350+/-500 km s-1,respectively, were determined.
| Distances of Galactic Planetary Nebulae Based on a Relationship Between the Central Star Mass and the N/O Abundance
In this paper, we propose a method to determine distances of Galacticplanetary nebulae on the basis of a relationship between the centralstar mass and the nebular N/O abundance ratio. This relationship is usedin combination with some basic parameters of the central stars, such asthe lambda 5480 flux, surface gravity and visual magnitude in order toobtain distances to a sample of a hundred Galactic planetary nebulae.
| The dust content of planetary nebulae: a reappraisal
We have performed a statistical analysis using broad band IRAS data onabout 500 planetary nebulae with the aim of characterizing their dustcontent. Our approach is different from previous studies in that it usesan extensive grid of photoionization models to test the methods forderiving the dust temperature, the dust-to-gas mass ratio and theaverage grain size. In addition, we use only distance independentdiagrams. With our models, we show the effect of contamination by atomiclines in the broad band IRAS fluxes during planetary nebula evolution.We find that planetary nebulae with very different dust-to-gas massratios exist, so that the dust content is a primordial parameter for theinterpretation of far infrared data of planetary nebulae. In contrastwith previous studies, we find no evidence for a decrease in thedust-to-gas mass ratio as the planetary nebulae evolve. We also showthat the decrease in grain size advocated by Natta & Panagia(\cite{NattaPanagia}) and Lenzuni et al. (\cite{Lenzuni}) is an artefactof their method of analysis. Our results suggest that the timescale fordestruction of dust grains in planetary nebulae is larger than theirlifetime. Table~1 is only accessible in electronic form at the CDS viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html
| A HUBBLE SPACE TELESCOPE Survey for Resolved Companions of Planetary Nebula Nuclei
We report the results of a Hubble Space Telescope ``snapshot'' surveyaimed at finding resolved binary companions of the central stars ofGalactic planetary nebulae (PNe). Using the the Wide Field and PlanetaryCamera and Wide Field Planetary Camera 2, we searched the fields of 113PNe for stars whose close proximity to the central star suggests aphysical association. In all, we find 10 binary nuclei that are verylikely to be physically associated and another six that are possiblebinary associations. By correcting for interstellar extinction andplacing the central stars' companions on the main sequence (or, in onecase, on the white dwarf cooling curve), we derive distances to theobjects, and thereby significantly increase the number of PNe withreliable distances. Comparison of our derived distances with thoseobtained from various statistical methods shows that all of the latterhave systematically overestimated the distances, by factors ranging upto a factor of 2 or more. We show that this error is most likely due tothe fact that the properties of our PNe with binary nuclei aresystematically different from those of PNe used heretofore to calibratestatistical methods. Specifically, our PNe tend to have lower surfacebrightnesses at the same physical radius than the traditionalcalibration objects. This difference may arise from a selection effect:the PNe in our survey are typically nearby, old nebulae, whereas most ofthe objects that calibrate statistical techniques are low-latitude, highsurface brightness, and more distant nebulae. As a result, thestatistical methods that seem to work well with samples of distant PNe,for example, those in the Galactic bulge or external galaxies, may notbe applicable to the more diverse population of local PNe. Our distancedeterminations could be improved with better knowledge of themetallicities of the individual nebulae and central stars, measurementsof proper motions and radial velocities for additional candidatecompanions, and deeper HST images of several of our new binary nuclei.
| Bipolar outflows and the evolution of stars
Hypersonic bipolar outflows are a ubiquitous phenomena associated withboth young and highly evolved stars. Observations of Planetary Nebulae,the nebulae surrounding Luminous Blue Variables such as /η Carinae,Wolf Rayet bubbles, the circumstellar environment of SN 1987A and YoungStellar Objects all reveal high velocity outflows with a wide range ofshapes. In this paper the current state of our theoretical understandingof these outflows is reviewed. Beginning with Planetary Nebulaeconsiderable progress has been made in understanding bipolar outflows asthe result of stellar winds interacting with the circumstellarenvironment. In what has been called the ``Generalized Wind BlownBubble'' (GWBB) scenario, a fast tenuous wind from the central starexpands into a ambient medium with an aspherical (toroidal) densitydistribution. Inertial gradients due to the gaseous torus quickly leadto an expanding prolate or bipolar shell of swept-up gas bounded bystrong shock waves. Numerical simulations of the GWBB scenario show asurprisingly rich variety of gasdynamical behavior, allowing models torecover many of the observed properties of stellar bipolar outflowsincluding the development of collimated supersonic jets. In this paperthe physics behind the GWBB scenario is reviewed in detail and itsstrengths and weakness are considered. Alternative models involving MHDprocesses are also examined. Applications of these models to each of theprinciple classes of stellar bipolar outflow (YSO, PNe, LBV, SN87A) arethen reviewed. Outstanding issues in the study of bipolar outflows areconsidered as are those questions which arise when the outflows areviewed as a single class of phenomena occurring across the HR diagram.
| Abundance gradients in the outer galactic disk from planetary nebulae
Radial abundance gradients of the element ratios O/H, Ne/H, S/H, andAr/H are determined on the basis of a sample of disk planetary nebulae.The behaviour of the gradients at large distances from the galacticcentre, R > R_0 = 7.6 kpc, is emphasized. It is concluded that thederived gradients are consistent with an approximately constant slope inthe inner parts of the Galaxy, and some flattening for distances largerthan R_0. A comparison is made with previous determinations using bothphotoionized nebulae and young stars, and some consequences ontheoretical models for the chemical evolution of the galactic disk arediscussed. Table~1 is available only electronically at the CDS(anonymousftp 130.79.128.5 or http://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html)
| An atlas of images of Planetary Nebulae
A catalogue of narrowband CCD images of 100 southern and 1 northernPlanetary Nebulae is presented. The data are images taken in the lightof the Hα , Hβ , [OIII]500.7 nm, and [NII]658.4 nm lines. Foreach image we give the exposure time, the maximum extent of the nebula,and the seeing measured from the frames themselves. For ease ofreference, we have added an alphabetical list of the objects. Our listwill be useful for morphological studies of Planetary Nebulae, and iscomplementary to previously published lists, especially the one of\cite[Schwarz et al. (1992)]{sch92}. Based on observations obtained atthe European Southern Observatory, La Silla, Chile.
| Astrophysical jets : a phenomenological examination of acceleration and collimation.
Not Available
| The kinematics of 867 galactic planetary nebulae
We present a compilation of radial velocities of 867 galactic planetarynebulae. Almost 900 new measurements are included. Previously publishedkinematical data are compared with the new high-resolution data toassess their accuracies. One of the largest samples in the literatureshows evidence for a systematic velocity offset. We calculate weightedaverages between all available data. Of the final values in thecatalogue, 90% have accuracies better than 20 km s(-1) . We use thiscompilation to derive kinematical parameters of the galacticdifferential rotation obtained from least-square fitting and toestablish the Disk rotation curve; we find no significal trend for thepresence of an increasing external rotation curve. We examine also therotation of the bulge; the derived curve is consistent with a linearlyincreasing rotation velocity with l: we find V_b,r=(9.9+/-1.3)l -(6.7+/-8.5) km s(-1) . A possible steeper gradient in the innermostregion is indicated. Table 2 is available in electronic form only, viaanonymous ftp to cdsarc.u-strasbg.fr (130.79.128.5) or viahttp://cdsweb.u-strasbg.fr/Abstract.html
| A Morphological Study of Planetary Nebulae
We have produced simulated images of 110 planetary nebulae using theellipsoidal shell model. This process has allowed us to remove theprojection effects from the morphological classification of planetarynebulae and has provided quantitative measures of the intrinsicasymmetries of the nebulae. It is shown that the morphology of mostplanetary nebulae can be reproduced with pole-to-equator density ratiosof 0.1-1. Many planetary nebulae also show a modest departure from axialsymmetry. Contrary to previous findings by Khromov & Kohoutek, thesky orientation of planetary nebulae in this sample is consistent with apurely random distribution. Extremely bipolar nebulae (e.g., those ofbutterfly shape) point to a steep density profile in the AGB envelopeand are more likely to be type I (high helium and/or nitrogen abundance)nebulae. We found evidence that these nebulae are likely to have moremassive progenitors and are at a more advanced stage of dynamicalevolution.
| Spectral trends in planetary nebulae: The roles of radiative and shock excitation
We have investigated de-reddened spectral line ratios for some 538planetary nebulae. As a result, it has proved possible to definecomparative variations between differing transitions, evaluate theviability of radiative modeling for the generality of nebulae, andassess the importance of shocks in modifying low- excitation linestrengths. Whilst most transitions are well represented in terms ofradiative excitation, the [OI] lambda 6300 Angstroms line appears to beappreciably too strong in most of the present sample; a deviation whichmay arise through shock interaction between the primary outflow shelland enveloping superwind material. Comparison between shock modeling andline excesses also suggests that an appreciable proportion of [SII]lambda 6716/31 Angstroms emission may arise through shock excitation; aconclusion which, if confirmed, may have serious consequences fornebular density estimations. Some 14 nebulae are identified as likelyshock candidates, whilst it is proposed that the majority of bipolarnebulae may also show spectral deviations associated with shockexcitation. Line excesses for these latter sources are most consistentwith shock velocities V_s ~ 80 => 100 km s(-1) ; values which arealso comparable to observed wind velocities. Finally, sources containingFLIERs (\cite[Balick et al. 1993]{ba93}) are shown to be confined tohighly specific spectral regimes; a result which permits us to identifythree further possible FLIER sources, and propose characteristic lineratio diagnostics for the further discovery of such features.
| A self-consistent determination of distances, physical parameters, and chemical composition for a large sample of galactic planetary nebulae: chemical composition
The relative abundances of He, C, N, O, Ne, Mg, Si, S, and Ar arepresented for, respectively, 185, 65, 212, 221, 180, 13, 41, 197, and205 Galactic planetary nebulae. The observed stages of ionization weretaken into account using the relations between the relative abundancesof different ions derived from a grid of photoionization models for thenebular emission. The chemical compositions of all the planetary nebulaewere determined using the same method and the same atomic data, so thatthe results have a high degree of uniformity; this is the first timethis has been done for such a large sample of Galactic planetary nebulae(221 objects).
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