R Aquarii - A symbiotic star

[strongmanmike]

At only about 2 arc min in size, I hope this is still something a little different and interesting :)

Seldom imaged, R Aquarii is a fascinating star in Aquarius, it is a binary star system composed of a white dwarf and red Mira type variable giant star. When the two stars get close enough in their orbit and or the giant star expands, the red giant spills material into an accretion disc around the white dwarf which then spirals down onto the hot companion causing an outburst, creating both a surrounding nebula and a jet. The jet is visible as a teal green streak running diagonally across the star in this image. The red nebula is also known as Ced 211.

R Aquarii (http://www.pbase.com/strongmanmike2002/image/164509166/original)

It also seems my deep exposures may have revealed some new features around the star too, which are in the process of being investigated and hopefully verified. So if one or more of them turn out to be real and untill now unknown or went unnoticed ..well, you heard it here first on IIS! Stay tuned :D

Faint features around R Aquarii (http://www.pbase.com/strongmanmike2002/image/164488803/original)

Mike

[gregbradley]

Wow Mike. Awesome!

Greg.

[Atmos]

That is absolutely fascinating Mike! Brilliant capture :thumbsup: You've got another "watch this space".

[Placidus]

A thing of beauty, Mike. Wonderfully thought out, investigated, photographed, and explained. The jet is magnificent, as is its origin.

[mountainjoo]

Wow. What an incredible object, and well captured!

[DJT]

That is a really interesting image you gone and got there. Great write up as well. Looking forward to see what happens next.
Top job:thumbsup:

[Andy01]

Thats so cool it's icy :cool3:
Well done on bringing something new & funky to the table Mike!
Wonder if the Hubble has captured it yet?

[Bassnut]

wow, thats very tasty indeed Mike, right out of left field, love it!. The structure and colour is fascinating

[atalas]

Awesome:thumbsup::thumbsup::thumbsu p:

[Stevec35]

Looks great Mike!

Cheers

Steve

[Cosmic]

Nothing short of awesome, I'm extremely impressed! Well done Mike.

[SimmoW]

Yes, fascinating and a great write up Mike. Crossed fingers here

[Merlin66]

Good one Mike.
The spectrum will show the binary pair and the interaction of the material movements between the stars.
http://www.astrosurf.com/aras/Aras_DataBase/Symbiotics/RAqr.htm

[alpal]

Hi Mike,
nice capture.
It's great to see something different &
there is much to learn as well.

cheers
Allan

[RickS]

Great catch, Mike. A very interesting and unusual object. Good luck with the faint stuff.

[cometcatcher]

Never seen that before. Love it!

[Derek Klepp]

Great bit of science Mike keep us updated with the features.

[topheart]

Hi Mike,
Fantastic capture. Great to see an object that is so interesting and different.
You have given us a hint of more to come with those faint jets.
I can't wait to learn more about the science of this object.
This image is an inspiration, to say the least.

Thanks,
Tim

[strongmanmike]

Thanks for the kind comments everyone glad you all found it interesting :thumbsup: I do like shooting unusual but cool things occasionally, it's fun, we can miss a lot of cool stuff if we only concentrate on the main attractions all the time :thumbsup:

I'll keep you posted re the known status of the faint features I picked up...ya never know..? :)

Mike

[Merlin66]

Some additional info...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/R_Aquarii

[strongmanmike]

Cheers Ray, yes, R Aquarii was one of the early HST targets, done before it got its corrective glasses, but more zoomed right into the star.

Mike

[Shiraz]

well that is darned good - really good detail in the outer bits.

[strongmanmike]

Glad you enjoyed the view Ray, there are so many intriguing objects out there that we don't see imaged :)

Mike

[astronobob]

Sheeeze Mike, your work is Awesome !!
All the best with any discoveries now or in the future !!
Rgrds

[strongmanmike]

Ah huh, he, he, thanks Bob :thumbsup:

Mike

[Ryderscope]

Brilliant the way that you find unusual and interesting object to capture Mike.

[clive milne]

That's very good Mike.

At the very least, it is more interesting than the last (and probably next) one hundred and one iterations of M42... imho)

[strongmanmike]

A friend Sakib Rasool helps on occasions, in fact and along with many other suggestions, he suggested R Aquarii to me and it looked interesting so an excellent suggestion I recon :)



Cheers Clive :)....although once I get my wide field setup running, I will likely hit the M42 region again :question: :lol:

Mike

[suma126]

:thumbsup:

[strongmanmike]

Well Shane...cant say too much just yet...but it is currently being investigated by much higher forces ;)

So, stay tuned :)

Mike

[rogerg]

Wow, Mike, that's awesome - the image visually, photographing a rare object, and potentially finding something new! :thumbsup: