Water vapor and silicon monoxide maser observations in the protoplanetary nebula OH 231.8+4

OH 231.8+4.2 is a well studied preplanetary nebula (pPN) around a binary stellar system that shows a remarkable bipolar outflow. To study the structure and kinematics of the inner 10-80 AU nebular regions we performed high-resolution observations of the H$_2$O 6$_{1,6}$--5$_{2,3}$ and $^{28}$SiO $v$=2, $J$=1--0 maser emissions with the Very Long Baseline Array. The absolute position of both emission distributions were recovered using the phase referencing technique, and accurately registered in HST optical images. H$_2$O maser clumps are found to be distributed in two areas of 20 mas in size spatially displaced by $\sim$60 milli-arcseconds along an axis oriented nearly north-south. SiO masers are tentatively found to be placed between the two H$_2$O maser emitting regions, probably indicating the position of the Mira component of the system. The SiO maser emission traces an inner equatorial component with a diameter of 12 AU, probably a disk rotating around the M-type star. Outwards, we detect in the H$_2$O data a pair of polar caps, separated by 80 AU. We believe that the inner regions of the nebula probably have been altered by the presence of the companion, leading to an equator-to-pole density contrast that may explain the lack of H$_2$O masers and strong SiO maser emission in the denser, equatorial regions.Comment: 5 pages, 1 figure, A&A accepte

Relative astrometry of the J=1-0, v=1 and v=2 SiO masers towards R Leonis Minoris using VERA

Oxygen-rich Asymptotic Giant Branch (AGB) stars are intense emitters of SiO and H$_2$O maser lines at 43 (J=1-0, v=1 and 2) and 22 GHz, respectively. VLBI observations of the maser emission provides a unique tool to sample the innermost layers of the circumstellar envelopes in AGB stars. Nevertheless, the difficulties in achieving astrometrically aligned v=1 and v=2 SiO maser maps have traditionally prevented a unique interpretation of the observations in terms of physical underlying conditions, which depend on the nature of the SiO pumping mechanism. We have carried out observations of the SiO and H$_2$O maser emission towards RLMi, using the astrometric capabilities of VERA. Due to the too-weak emission of the reference calibrator we had to develop a special method to accurately relate the coordinates for both transitions. We present relative astrometrically aligned v=1 and v=2 J=1-0 SiO maser maps, at multiple epochs, and discuss the astrophysical results. The incorporation of astrometric information into the maps of SiO masers challenges the weak points in the current theoretical models, which will need further refinements to address the observations results.Comment: 17 pages, 8 figure

Mapping the circumstellar SiO maser emission in R Leo

The study of the innermost circumstellar layers around AGB stars is crucial to understand how these envelopes are formed and evolve. The SiO maser emission occurs at a few stellar radii from the central star, providing direct information on the stellar pulsation and on the chemical and physical properties of these regions. Our data also shed light on several aspects of the SiO maser pumping theory that are not well understood yet. We aim to determine} the relative spatial distribution of the 43 GHz and 86 GHz SiO maser lines in the oxygen-rich evolved star R Leo. We have imaged with milliarcsecond resolution, by means of Very Long Baseline Interferometry, the 43 GHz (28SiO v=1, 2 J=1-0 and 29SiO v=0 J=1-0) and 86 GHz (28SiO v=1 J=2-1 and 29SiO v=0 J=2-1) masing regions. We confirm previous results obtained in other oxygen-rich envelopes. In particular, when comparing the 43 GHz emitting regions, the 28SiO v=2 transition is produced in an inner layer, closer to the central star. On the other hand, the 86 GHz line arises in a clearly farther shell. We have also mapped for the first time the 29SiO v=0 J=1-0 emission in R Leo. The already reported discrepancy between the observed distributions of the different maser lines and the theoretical predictions is also found in R Leo.Comment: accepted for publication in A&