Discovery of collimated bipolar outflows in the planetary nebula Th2-A

A. Danehkar,
Department of Physics and Astronomy, Macquarie University, Sydney, NSW 2109, Australia
Present address: Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA

Date: Received 2015 March 18; accepted 2015 November 5; published 2015 December 4

Abstract:

We present a comprehensive set of spatially resolved, integral field spectroscopic mapping of the Wolf-Rayet planetary nebula Th2-A, obtained using the Wide Field Spectrograph on the Australian National University 2.3-m telescope. Velocity-resolved H$\alpha$ channel maps with a resolution of $20$kms$^{-1}$ allow us to identify different kinematic components within the nebula. This information is used to develop a three-dimensional morpho-kinematic model of the nebula using the interactive kinematic modeling tool SHAPE. These results suggest that Th2-A has a thick toroidal shell with an expansion velocity of $40\pm10$kms$^{-1}$, and a thin prolate ellipsoid with collimated bipolar outflows toward its axis reaching velocities in the range of $70$-110kms$^{-1}$, with respect to the central star. The relationship between its morpho-kinematic structure and peculiar [WO]-type stellar characteristics deserves further investigation.
 
Keywords: ISM: jets and outflows - planetary nebulae: individual (Th2-A) - stars: Wolf-Rayet
 
Journal Reference: A. Danehkar. The Astrophysical Journal, 815:35, 2015. doi:10.1088/0004-637X/815/1/35