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Abstract A sensitive (1σrms ≤ 3 mK; 2 MHz resolution) 1 mm spectral survey (214.5–285.5 GHz) of the envelope of the oxygen-rich supergiant star NML Cygni (NML Cyg) has been conducted using the 10 m Submillimeter Telescope of the Arizona Radio Observatory. These data represent the first spectral line survey of NML Cyg and are complementary to a previous 1 mm survey of the envelope of a similar hypergiant, VY Canis Majoris (VY CMa). The complete NML Cyg data set is presented here. In the survey, 104 emission lines were observed, arising from 17 different molecules and 4 unidentified features. Many of the observed features have complex line profiles, arising from asymmetric outflows characteristic of hypergiant stars. While most of the lines in the survey arise from SiO, SO, SO2, and SiS, CO had the strongest emission. Five other C-bearing species are identified in the survey (HCN, CN, HCO+, CS, and HNC), demonstrating an active carbon chemistry despite the O-rich environment. Moreover, NS was observed, but not NO, although favorable transitions of both molecules lie in the surveyed region. Sulfur chemistry appears to be prominent in NML Cyg and plays an important role in the collimated outflows. The refractory species observed, NaCl and AlO, have narrow emission lines, indicating that these molecules do not reach the terminal expansion velocity. NaCl and AlO likely condense into dust grains at r < 50R*. From NaCl, the chlorine isotope ratio was determined to be35Cl/37Cl = 3.85 ± 0.30.
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PO and PN in the Envelope of VY Canis Majoris: Elucidating the Chemistry and Origin of Phosphorus
Abstract TheJ= 5.5 → 4.5 andJ= 5 → 4 transitions of PO and PN, respectively, have been imaged in the envelope of hypergiant star VY Canis Majoris (VY CMa) using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array with angular resolutions of 0.″2 and 1.″5 and data from the Submillimeter Telescope of the Arizona Radio Observatory. These maps are the first high-fidelity images of PO and PN in a circumstellar envelope. Both molecules are primarily present in a spherical, star-centered region with a radius ∼60R*(0.″5), indicating formation by LTE chemistry and then condensation into grains. PN, however, shows additional, fan-shaped emission 2″ southwest of the star, coincident with dust features resolved by Hubble Space Telescope (HST), as well as four newly identified distinct structures 1″–2″ toward the north, east, and west (Cloudlets I–IV), not visible in HST images. The “SW Fan” and the cloudlets are also prominent in theJ= 5.5 → 4.5 transition of NS. The correlation of PN with NS, SiO, and dust knots in the SW Fan suggests a formation in shocked gas enhanced with nitrogen. Excess nitrogen is predicted to favor PN synthesis over PO. Abundances for PN and PO in the spherical source aref∼ 4.4 × 10−8and 1.4 × 10−7, respectively, relative to H2. Given a cosmic abundance of phosphorus, an unusually high fraction (∼35%) is contained in PO and PN. Alternatively, the stellar winds may be enriched in P (and N) by dredge-up from the interior of VY CMa.
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- Award ID(s):
- 2307305
- PAR ID:
- 10533902
- Publisher / Repository:
- DOI PREFIX: 10.3847
- Date Published:
- Journal Name:
- The Astrophysical Journal Letters
- Volume:
- 971
- Issue:
- 2
- ISSN:
- 2041-8205
- Format(s):
- Medium: X Size: Article No. L43
- Size(s):
- Article No. L43
- Sponsoring Org:
- National Science Foundation
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