Journal
ASTROPHYSICAL JOURNAL
Volume 777, Issue 2, Pages -Publisher
IOP PUBLISHING LTD
DOI: 10.1088/0004-637X/777/2/89
Keywords
circumstellar matter; stars: emission-line, Be; stars: evolution; stars: individual (MWC 349, MWC 349A); stars: winds, outflows
Categories
Funding
- National Science Foundation [AST-1140030]
- NASA [NNX10AD68G]
- NSF REU [AST-0851892]
- Nantucket Maria Mitchell Association
- Division Of Astronomical Sciences
- Direct For Mathematical & Physical Scien [0851892, 1140030] Funding Source: National Science Foundation
Ask authors/readers for more resources
We report on a study of the similar to 10' (similar to 5 pc in projection) environs of the peculiar, high-luminosity emission-line star MWC 349A in the IR, radio, and visible domains. Besides the recently discovered X-shaped, arcmin-scale IR nebula centered on MWC 349A (X nebula), with the kinematic age of similar to 10(4) yr, we identify several young objects pointing toward an ongoing process of active star formation in this region and estimate some physical parameters of the newly discovered objects. The radiation of the X nebula is due to a geometrically and optically thin dust front heated to T-d approximate to 60-70 K by the radiation of the central star. The bipolar dust front probably results from the interaction of a powerful stellar wind with the circumstellar disk. One of the related objects is an elongated, cold molecular cloud, similar to 1 pc in size, adjacent to MWC 349A in projection and having the same radial velocity (V-LSR approximate to +9 km s(-1)). The proximity of the molecular cloud may indicate that MWC 349A was born locally rather than being a runaway object ejected from the core of Cyg OB2 several Myr ago. If it is still associated with its natal cloud, MWC 349A may be a rare example of the observable pre-main-sequence stage of a similar to 30 M-circle dot star. If the association with the molecular cloud is an effect of projection, however, MWC 349A may already be an evolved star, even if it was born locally. We discuss future observations that may shed more light on the evolutionary status of this unique object.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available