Candidates for giant lobes projecting from the LBV stars P Cygni and R 143

Abstract

Deep, wide-field, continuum-subtracted, images in the light of the Halpha+[NII] 6548 & 6584 A and [O III] 5007 A nebular emission lines have been obtained of the environment of the Luminous Blue Variable (LBV) star P Cygni. A previously discovered, receding, nebulous filament along PA 50 deg has now been shown to extend up to 12' from this star. Furthermore, in the light of [O III] 5007 A, a southern counterpart is discovered as well as irregular filaments on the opposite side of P Cygni. Line profiles from this nebulous complex indicate that this extended nebulosity is similar to that associated with middle-aged supernova remnants. However, there are several indications that it has originated in P Cygni and is not just a chance superposition along the same sight-line. This possibility is explored here and comparison is made with a new image of the LBV star R 143 in the LMC from which similar filaments appear to project. The dynamical age of the P Cygni giant lobe of ~5x10^{4} yr is consistent with both the predicted and observed durations of the LBV phases of 50M stars after they have left the main sequence. Its irregular shape may have been determined by the cavity formed in the ambient gas by the energetic wind of the star, and shaped by a dense torus, when on the main sequence. The proper motion and radial velocity of P Cygni, with respect to its local environment, could explain the observed angular and kinematical shifts of the star compared with the giant lobe.

arXiv comment7 pages, 3 figures, accepted for publication in A&A

References in corpus (5)

• Chemical composition and origin of nebulae around Luminous Blue Variables
• On the Structure and Kinematics of Nebulae around LBVs and LBV Candidates in the LMC
• A disrupted circumstellar torus inside eta Carinae's Homunculus Nebula
• Deep optical observations of G 65.3+5.7
• The Manchester occulting mask imager (MOMI) - first results on the environment of P Cygni

Cited by in corpus (8)

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• Galactic Twins of the Ring Nebula Around SN1987A and a Possible LBV-like Phase for Sk-69 202
• Infrared [Fe II] emission from P Cygni's nebula: Atomic data, mass, kinematics, and the 1600 A.D. outburst
• A high-speed bi-polar outflow from the archetypical pulsating star Mira A
• The molecular gas around the luminous blue variable star G24.73+0.69
• A long trail behind the planetary nebula HFG1 (PK 136+05) and its precataclysmic binary central star V664 Cas
• A high resolution image of the inner-shell of the PCygni nebula in the infra-red [Fe II] line
• A deep mosaic of [O III] 5007 A CCD images of the environment of the LBV star P Cygni