34. Interstellar Matter and Planetary Nebulae

Planetary Nebulae

Planetary nebulae (PNe) can be used to trace intermediate and old stellar populations in galaxies and the intracluster medium out to approximately 20 Mpc. PNe can be easily identified with narrow-band surveys, and their chemical abundances and radial velocities can be measured with multi-slit or multi-fiber spectrographs. We briefly review what has been accomplished to date, and include tables ...

Planetary nebulae as probes of dark matter in NGC 3384

The interaction of planetary nebulae and their AGB progenitors with the interstellar medium

Interaction with the Interstellar Medium (ISM) cannot be ignored in understanding planetary nebula (PN) evolution and shaping. In an effort to understand the range of shapes observed in the outer envelopes of PNe, we have run a comprehensive set of three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations, from the beginning of the asymptotic giant branch (AGB) superwind phase until the end of the post–AGB/PN...

Intracluster Planetary Nebulae

We review the progress of research on intracluster planetary nebulae (IPN). In the past five years, hundreds of IPN candidates have been detected in the Virgo and Fornax galaxy clusters and searches are also underway in poorer galaxy groups. From the observations to date, and applying the known properties of extragalactic planetary nebulae, the intracluster light in Virgo and Fornax: 1) is sign...

Hydrogen-poor planetary nebulae

Five planetary nebulae are known to show hydrogen-poor material near the central star. In the case of A58, this gas was ejected following a late thermal pulse similar to Sakurai. In this paper I will review these five objects. One of them, IRAS 18333−2357, may not be a true PN. I will show that there is a strong case for a relation to the [WC] stars and their relatives, the weak emission-line s...