85 research outputs found
12CO emission from EP Aqr: Another example of an axi-symmetric AGB wind?
The CO(1-0) and (2-1) emission of the circumstellar envelope of the AGB star
EP Aqr has been observed using the IRAM PdBI and the IRAM 30-m telescope. The
line profiles reveal the presence of two distinct components centered on the
star velocity, a broad component extending up to ~10 km/s and a narrow
component indicating an expansion velocity of ~2 km/s. An early analysis of
these data was performed under the assumption of isotropic winds. The present
study revisits this interpretation by assuming instead a bipolar outflow nearly
aligned with the line of sight. A satisfactory description of the observed flux
densities is obtained with a radial expansion velocity increasing from ~2 km/s
at the equator to ~10 km/s near the poles. The angular aperture of the bipolar
outflow is ~45 deg with respect to the star axis, which makes an angle of ~13
deg with the line of sight. A detailed study of the CO(1-0) to CO(2-1) flux
ratio reveals a significant dependence of the temperature on the star latitude,
smaller and steeper at the poles than at the equator at large distances from
the star. Under the hypothesis of radial expansion and of rotation invariance
about the star axis, the effective density has been evaluated in space as a
function of star coordinates. Evidence is found for an enhancement of the
effective density in the northern hemisphere of the star at angular distances
in excess of ~3" and covering the whole longitudinal range. The peak velocity
of the narrow component is observed to vary slightly with position on the sky,
a variation consistent with the model and understood as the effect of the
inclination of the star axis with respect to the line of sight. While the
phenomenological model presented here reproduces well the general features of
the observations, significant differences are also revealed, which would
require a better spatial resolution to be properly described.Comment: accepted for publication in Astronomy & Astrophysic
The morpho-kinematics of the circumstellar envelope around the AGB star EP Aqr
ALMA observations of CO(1-0) and CO(2-1) emissions of the circumstellar
envelope of EP Aqr, an oxygen-rich AGB star, are reported. A thorough analysis
of their properties is presented using an original method based on the
separation of the data-cube into a low velocity component associated with an
equatorial outflow and a faster component associated with a bipolar outflow. A
number of important and new results are obtained concerning the distribution in
space of the effective emissivity, the temperature, the density and the flux of
matter. A mass loss rate of (1.60.4)10 solar masses per year is
measured. The main parameters defining the morphology and kinematics of the
envelope are evaluated and uncertainties inherent to de-projection are
critically discussed. Detailed properties of the equatorial region of the
envelope are presented including a measurement of the line width and a precise
description of the observed inhomogeneity of both morphology and kinematics. In
particular, in addition to the presence of a previously observed spiral
enhancement of the morphology at very small Doppler velocities, a similarly
significant but uncorrelated circular enhancement of the expansion velocity is
revealed, both close to the limit of sensitivity. The results of the analysis
place significant constraints on the parameters of models proposing
descriptions of the mass loss mechanism, but cannot choose among them with
confidence.Comment: 26 pages, 31 figures, accepted for publication in MNRA
- …