The circumstellar envelope around the S-type AGB star W Aql Effects of an eccentric binary orbit

TL;DR

This study uses high-resolution ALMA observations and modeling to analyze how a binary companion influences the circumstellar envelope of the S-type AGB star W Aql, revealing effects of orbital eccentricity on envelope morphology.

Contribution

It provides the first detailed ALMA imaging of W Aql's CSE and compares observations with 3D hydrodynamic and radiative transfer models to assess binary impact on envelope structure.

Findings

The mass-loss rate of W Aql aligns with previous estimates.

The CO emission shows a smooth component with arc patterns linked to binary interaction.

Binary eccentricity influences the observed envelope morphology.

Abstract

The CO(J=3-2) emission from the CSE of the binary S-type AGB star W Aql has been observed at subarcsecond resolution using ALMA. The aim of this paper is to investigate the wind properties of the AGB star and to analyse how the known companion has shaped the CSE. The average mass-loss rate during the creation of the detected CSE is estimated through modelling, using the ALMA brightness distribution and previously published single-dish measurements as observational constraints. The ALMA observations are presented and compared to the results from a 3D smoothed particle hydrodynamics (SPH) binary interaction model with the same properties as the W Aql system and with two different orbital eccentricities. Three-dimensional radiative transfer modelling is performed and the response of the interferometer is modelled and discussed. The estimated average mass-loss rate of W~Aql agrees with previous results. The size of the emitting region is consistent with photodissociation models. The CO(J=3-2) emission is dominated by a smooth component overlayed with two weak arc patterns with different separations. The larger pattern is predicted by the binary interaction model with separations of 10" and therefore likely due to the known companion. It is consistent with a binary orbit with low eccentricity. The smaller separation pattern is asymmetric and coincides with the dust distribution, but the separation timescale (200 yrs) is not consistent with any known process of the system. The separation of the known companions of the system is large enough to not have a very strong effect on the circumstellar morphology. The density contrast across the envelope of a binary with an even larger separation will not be easily detectable, even with ALMA, unless the orbit is strongly asymmetric or the AGB star has a much larger mass-loss rate.