The Magellanic Cloud Calibration of the Galactic Planetary Nebula Distance Scale

Stanghellini, Letizia; Shaw, Richard A.; Villaver, E.

doi:10.1086/592395

Cited by 131 publications

(160 citation statements)

References 38 publications

(38 reference statements)

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“…Distances of PNe in the LMC show one-sigma uncertainty of 20%. A comparison between the new method and the distance scale proposed by Stanghellini et al (2008) does not show significant bias, and they generally agree with each other within 30%. Notes.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 59%

A revised distance scale of planetary nebulae

Ortiz¹

2013

A&A

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Context. The advent of large-scale, high-sensitivity surveys of the Galaxy (2MASS, WISE, Spitzer, etc.) has allowed detection of a large number of planetary nebulae (PNe), some of them at large distances. Aims. I propose a new distance scale of planetary nebulae, based on two main quantities: the flux density (or magnitude) at 8 μm and the nebular apparent size. Methods. I used these quantities to calculate the specific intensity of the radiation I 8 μm , which decreases as the nebula evolves. The PNe situated in the Large Magellanic Cloud (LMC) with 8 μm photometry obtained by Spitzer and diameter obtained from HST observations were used as calibrators. Results. After calibration, I recalculated distances of PNe in the LMC, and they show a one-sigma spread of 10 kpc (20%). Eventually, I applied the method to a sample of 47 Galactic PNe observed during the Spitzer survey. These results showed agreement within 0.2 dex with the distances determined with another method of calibrating with PNe in the LMC. Conclusions. The main advantage of the present distance scale is that it is nearly "extinction free", which makes it especially suited to PNe severely affected by interstellar extinction, such as the Galactic disc and bulge. On the other hand, the method requires an unbiased determination of the nebular size, which might be quite uncertain for PNe with extended faint features, such as haloes and ansae.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 59%

A revised distance scale of planetary nebulae

Ortiz¹

2013

A&A

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“…8). The post-AGB age is roughly 10 000 years for both of these tracks, which is a reasonable age for a PN and, for a distance of ∼3 kpc (Zhang 1995;Phillips 2004;Stanghellini et al 2008), would imply an expansion velocity of ∼30 km s −1 (again, perfectly reasonable for a PN, e.g. ; Jones et al 2010aJones et al , 2012.…”

Section: Lightcurve and Radial Velocitiesmentioning

confidence: 85%

The post-common envelope central stars of the planetary nebulae Henize 2-155 and Henize 2-161

Jones

Boffin

Rodríguez‐Gil

et al. 2015

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We present a study of Hen 2-155 and Hen 2-161, two planetary nebulae which bear striking morphological similarities to other planetary nebulae known to host close-binary central stars. Both central stars are revealed to be photometric variables while spectroscopic observations confirm that Hen 2-155 is host to a double-eclipsing, post-common-envelope system with an orbital period of 3 h 33 m making it one of the shortest period binary central stars known. The observations of Hen 2-161 are found to be consistent with a post-common-envelope binary of period ∼1 day. A detailed model of the central star of Hen 2-155 is produced, showing the nebular progenitor to be a hot, post-AGB remnant of approximately 0.62 M , consistent with the age of the nebula, and the secondary star to be an M dwarf whose radius is almost twice the expected zero age main sequence radius for its mass. In spite of the small numbers, all main-sequence companions, of planetary nebulae central stars, to have had their masses and radii constrained by both photometric and spectroscopic observations have also been found to display this "inflation". The cause of the "inflation" is uncertain but is probably related to rapid accretion, immediately before the recent common-envelope phase, to which the star has not yet thermally adjusted. The chemical composition of both nebulae is also analysed, showing both to display elevated abundance discrepancy factors. This strengthens the link between elevated abundance discrepancy factors and close binarity in the nebular progenitor.

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“…4 we show the luminosity function (PNLF) of Galactic PNe in the Hβ-equivalent absolute magnitude. The Hβ fluxes are from Cahn et al (1992), and the PN distances from Stanghellini et al (2008;see also Stanghellini & Haywood 2010). The solid histogram represents the homogeneous Galactic sample of 331 PNe where both distance and Hβ flux are known, and where spectroscopy has been performed and a lower limit or a detection of the He ii λ4686 line has been ac- In order to quantify the expectation of detecting the He ii emission line in a given PN population of a certain metallicity we use Käufl et al's (1993) models to derive PN opacity, where the non-evolving term of the opacity,τ λ (0), scales We know that the brightest PNe in a given population excludes the progeny of the massive AGB stars, i.e., those with M to > 2 M (Stanghellini & Renzini 2000).…”

Section: The Population Of M 81 Pnementioning

confidence: 99%

The population of planetary nebulae and H II regions in M 81

Stanghellini¹,

Magrini

Villaver³

et al. 2010

A&A

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Context. M 81 is an ideal laboratory to investigate the galactic chemical and dynamical evolution through the study of its young and old stellar populations.Aims. We analyze the chemical abundances of planetary nebulae and H ii regions in the M 81 disk for insight on galactic evolution, and compare it with that of other galaxies, including the Milky Way.Methods. We acquired Hectospec/MMT spectra of 39 PNe and 20 H ii regions, with 33 spectra viable for temperature and abundance analysis. Our PN observations represent the first PN spectra in M 81 ever published, while several H ii region spectra have been published before, although without a direct electron temperature determination. We determine elemental abundances of helium, nitrogen, oxygen, neon, sulfur, and argon in PNe and H ii regions, and determine their averages and radial gradients. Results. The average O/H ratio of PNe compared to that of the H ii regions indicates a general oxygen enrichment in M 81 in the last ∼10 Gyr. The PN metallicity gradient in the disk of M 81 is Δlog(O/H)/ΔR G = −0.055 ± 0.02 dex/kpc. Neon and sulfur in PNe have a radial distribution similar to that of oxygen, with similar gradient slopes. If we combine our H ii sample with the one in the literature we find a possible mild evolution of the gradient slope, with results consistent with gradient steepening with time. Additional spectroscopy is needed to confirm this trend. There are no type I PNe in our M 81 sample, consistently with the observation of only the brightest bins of the PNLF, the galaxy metallicity, and the evolution of post-AGB shells. Conclusions. Both the young and the old populations of M 81 disclose shallow but detectable negative radial metallicity gradient, which could be slightly steeper for the young population, thus not excluding a mild gradients steepening with the time since galaxy formation. During its evolution M 81 has been producing oxygen; its total oxygen enrichment exceeds that of other nearby galaxies.

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The Magellanic Cloud Calibration of the Galactic Planetary Nebula Distance Scale

Cited by 131 publications

References 38 publications

A revised distance scale of planetary nebulae

A revised distance scale of planetary nebulae

The post-common envelope central stars of the planetary nebulae Henize 2-155 and Henize 2-161

The population of planetary nebulae and H II regions in M 81

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