Expansion of hydrogen-poor knots in the born-again planetary nebulae A30 and A78

TL;DR

This study examines the complex expansion dynamics of hydrogen-poor knots in born-again planetary nebulae A30 and A78 using HST images over 20 years, revealing non-homologous expansion and intricate wind interactions.

Contribution

It provides the first detailed analysis of the expansion behavior and underlying physical processes of knots in A30 and A78, supported by radiation-hydrodynamical simulations.

Findings

Expansion is non-homologous with variable ages

Stellar wind interacts with ablated knot material

Simulations reproduce observed filament structures

Abstract

We analyze the expansion of hydrogen-poor knots and filaments in the born-again planetary nebulae A30 and A78 based on Hubble Space Telescope (HST) images obtained almost 20 yr apart. The proper motion of these features generally increases with distance to the central star, but the fractional expansion decreases, i.e., the expansion is not homologous. As a result, there is not a unique expansion age, which is estimated to be 610-950 yr for A30 and 600-1140 yr for A78. The knots and filaments have experienced complex dynamical processes: the current fast stellar wind is mass loaded by the material ablated from the inner knots; the ablated material is then swept up until it shocks the inner edges of the outer, hydrogen-rich nebula. The angular expansion of the outer filaments shows a clear dependence on position angle, indicating that the interaction of the stellar wind with the innermost knots channels the wind along preferred directions. The apparent angular expansion of the innermost knots seems to be dominated by the rocket effect of evaporating gas and by the propagation of the ionization front inside them. Radiation-hydrodynamical simulations show that a single ejection of material followed by a rapid onset of the stellar wind and ionizing flux can reproduce the variety of clumps and filaments at different distances from the central star found in A30 and A78.