The weather report from IRC+10216: Evolving irregular clouds envelop carbon star

Abstract

High angular resolution images of IRC+10216 are presented in several near infrared wavelengths spanning more than 8 years. These maps have been reconstructed from interferometric observations obtained at both Keck and the VLT, and also from stellar occultations by the rings of Saturn observed with the Cassini spacecraft. The dynamic inner regions of the circumstellar environment are monitored over eight epochs ranging between January 2000 and July 2008. The system is shown to experience substantial evolution within this period including the fading of many previously reported persistent features, some of which had been identified as the stellar photosphere. These changes are discussed in context of existing models for the nature of the underlying star and the circumstellar environment. With access to these new images, we are able to report that none of the previously identified bright spots in fact contain the star, which is buried in its own dust and not directly visible in the near infrared.

9 pages, 6 figures, Accepted by MNRAS

References in corpus (10)

• 2D Models for Dust-driven AGB Star Winds
• The circumstellar envelope of IRC+10216 from milli-arcsecond to arcmin scales
• The size, luminosity and motion of the extreme carbon star IRC+10216 (CW Leonis)
• Monte-Carlo Imaging for Optical Interferometry
• Discovery of multiple dust shells beyond 1 arcmin in the circumstellar envelope of IRC+10216 using Herschel/PACS
• The complex dust formation zone of the AGB star IRC+10216 probed with CARMA 0.25 arcsec angular resolution molecular observations
• HST Images Reveal Dramatic Changes in the Core of IRC+10216
• Discovery of a Shell of Neutral Atomic Hydrogen Surrounding the Carbon Star IRC+10216
• High Angular Resolution Stellar Imaging with Occultations from the Cassini Spacecraft I: Observational Technique
• High Angular Resolution Stellar Imaging with Occultations from the Cassini Spacecraft II: Kronocyclic Tomography

Cited by in corpus (14)

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• Clumpy dust clouds and extended atmosphere of the AGB star W Hya revealed with VLT/SPHERE-ZIMPOL and VLTI/AMBER
• Exploring the origin of clumpy dust clouds around cool giants. A global 3D RHD model of a dust-forming M-type AGB star
• Aperture synthesis imaging of the carbon AGB star R Sculptoris: Detection of a complex structure and a dominating spot on the stellar disk
• Exploring the innermost dust formation region of the oxygen-rich AGB star IK~Tau with VLT/SPHERE-ZIMPOL and VLTI/AMBER
• The Evolving Radio Photospheres of Long-Period Variable Stars
• Atmospheric molecular blobs shape up circumstellar envelopes of AGB stars
• The curious case of II Lup: a complex morphology revealed with SAM/NACO and ALMA
• Occultation observations of Saturn's rings with Cassini VIMS
• Multi-epoch Optical Images of IRC+10216 Tell About the Central Star And the Adjacent Environment
• Evidence for orbital motion of CW Leonis from ground-based astrometry
• Effects of Metallicity on Graphite, TiC, and SiC Condensation in Carbon Stars
• Near-infrared Integral-field Spectroscopy of the Wind Forming Region of CW Leo