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C. Muthu, S. Kwok (ASIAA), K. Volk (Gemini Observatory)
Mid-infrared imaging observations with broad and narrow band filters in the 'N' and 'Q' bands were obtained for four bipolar reflection nebulae with the Thermal-Region Camera and Spectrograph (T-ReCS) on the 8-m Gemini South telescope. T-ReCS, combined with the fast tip/tilt compensating secondary mirror, yields nearly diffraction limited images. These observations were aimed at finding the size and geometry of the emission regions and to investigate the spatial distribution of aromatic emission features in the nebulae. We are able to perform deconvolution on the images to achieve nearly pixel-limited spatial resolution (0.09 arcsec) on the images.
The four reflection nebulae observed (Hen3-401, the Red Rectangle, OH231.8+4.2, and Roberts 22) all have optical bipolar lobes separated by equatorial dark lanes. In all four objects, strong mid-infrared emissions are seen along the bipolar lobes. In Hen3-401 and the Red Rectangle, circular bright cores of respective sizes (FWHM) 0.26 arcsec and 0.44 arcsec are seen at 10 micron. The lack of extended dust emissions in the equatorial directions suggests that the dark lanes consist of dust with temperatures cooler than 100 K.
The author(s) of this abstract have provided an email address for comments about the abstract: muthu@asiaa.sinica.edu.tw
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 36 5
© 2004. The American Astronomical Society.