Astron. Astrophys. 322, L21-L24 (1997)

Letter to the Editor

The extended 1.3 mm continuum emission around CW Leo

M.A.T. Groenewegen ¹, W.E.C.J. van der Veen ², B. Lefloch ³ and A. Omont <sup>4

1</sup> Max-Planck Institut für Astrophysik, Karl-Schwarzschild-Straße 1, D-85740 Garching, Germany
² Department of Astronomy, Columbia University, 538 West 120th Street, New York, NY 10027, USA
³ IRAM, Avda. Divina Pastora 7, Nucleo Central, E-18012 Granada, Spain
⁴ Institut d'Astrophysique de Paris, CNRS, 98bis Boulevard Arago, F-75014 Paris, France

Received 11 December 1996 / Accepted 7 January 1997

Abstract

We have obtained a 150 map of the 1.3 mm emission around the carbon star CW Leo. Emission is detected at the 3 level out to a distance of from the central star. From model calculations we find that the dust density distribution is described by an approximate law superposed on which are possible density enhancements at about 5 and distance from the star. This could imply phases of enhanced mass loss lasting up to several hundred years duration over the last few 1000 years. The major uncertainty in a quantitative analysis is in the contribution of molecular lines. The density enhancement at is consistent with a recent phase of increased mass loss as inferred from CO data.

Key words: stars: carbon circumstellar matter stars: CW Leo stars: mass loss stars: AGB radio continuum: stars

Send offprint requests to: Martin Groenewegen

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Contents

• 1. Introduction
• 2. Observations
• 3. Modeling
• 4. Discussion and conclusions
• References

© European Southern Observatory (ESO) 1997

Online publication: June 5, 1998

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