Publication | Closed Access
A neon nova - Discovery of a remarkable 12.8 micron (Ne II) emission line in Nova Vulpeculae 1984 number 2
47
Citations
0
References
1985
Year
Infrared photometry and spectrophotometry ≡140 days after the eruption of Nova Vulpeculae 1984 Number 2 revealed an incredibly intense 12.8 μm [Ne II] forbidden emission line standing a factor of ≡60 above the free-free continuum at a spectral resolution of λ/Δλ = 67. It is the strongest 12.8 μm line, relative to the continuum, ever observed in an astrophysical source. The authors show that the amount of [Ne II] required to produce the observed emission feature equals or exceeds the solar abundance of neon. The ≡80 L_sun; radiated in the 12.8 μm line on 1985 May 15.4 UT was 1.5% of the outburst luminosity and nearly 14% of the total shell luminosity.