Structure in the fast wind of NGC6543

• Main Authors: Prinja, R. K., Hodges, S. E., Massa, D. L., Fullerton, A. W., Burnley, A. W.
• Format: Others
• Language: English
• Published: Universität Potsdam 2007
• Subjects: Astronomy and allied sciences
• Online Access: http://nbn-resolving.de/urn:nbn:de:kobv:517-opus-17788; http://opus.kobv.de/ubp/volltexte/2008/1778/

We exploit time-series $FUSE$ spectroscopy to {it uniquely} probe spatial structure and clumping in the fast wind of the central star of the H-rich planetary nebula NGC~6543 (HD~164963). Episodic and recurrent optical depth enhancements are discovered in the P{sc v} absorption troughs, with some evidence for a $sim$ 0.17-day modulation time-scale. The characteristics of these features are essentially identical to the discrete absorption components' (DACs) commonly seen in the UV lines of massive OB stars, suggesting the temporal structures seen in NGC~6543 likely have a physical origin that is similar to that operating in massive, luminous stars. The mechanism for forming coherent perturbations in the outflows is therefore apparently operating equally in the radiation-pressure-driven winds of widely differing momenta ($mdot$$v_infty$$R_star^{0.5}$) and flow times, as represented by OB stars and CSPN.