The nebulae around LBVs: a multiwavelength approach
INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via S. Sofia 78, 95123 Catania, ITALY
INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via S. Sofia 78, 95123 Catania, ITALY
INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via S. Sofia 78, 95123 Catania, ITALY
INAF-Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, Via S. Sofia 78, 95123 Catania, ITALY
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden St. MS-65, Cambridge, MA 02138-1516, USA
Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden St. MS-65, Cambridge, MA 02138-1516, USA
Abstract
We present first results of our study of a sample of Galactic LBV, aimed to contribute to a better understanding of the LBV phenomenon, by recovering the mass-loss history of the central object from the analysis of its associated nebula. Mass-loss properties have been derived by a synergistic use of different techniques, at different wavelengths, to obtain high-resolution, multi-wavelength maps, tracing the different emitting components coexisting in the stellar ejecta: the ionized/neutral gas and the dust. Evidence for asymmetric mass-loss and observational evidence of possible mutual interaction between gas and dust components have been observed by the comparison of mid-IR (Spitzer/IRAC, VLT/VISIR) and radio (VLA) images of the nebulae, while important information on the gas and dust composition have been derived from Spitzer/IRS spectra.