Tracing the Galactic Disk with Planetary Nebulae using Gaia DR3

TL;DR

This study uses Gaia DR3 data to improve distance estimates for Galactic planetary nebulae, analyze their distribution and velocities, and investigate the chemical gradient of the Galactic disk with new, Gaia-based measurements.

Contribution

The paper introduces a revised statistical scale for PN distances based on Gaia DR3 parallaxes and applies it to a large PN sample, providing updated Galactic distribution and chemical gradient analysis.

Findings

Derived a new catalog of ~850 PN distances using Gaia DR3 data.

Confirmed a mild steepening of the Galactic oxygen gradient over time.

Found broad agreement with previous studies but with improved Gaia-based measurements.

Abstract

We study the population of Galactic planetary Nebulae (PNe) and their central stars (CSs) through the analysis of their heliocentric distances and Galactic distribution. Distances are obtained by means of a revised statistical scale, based on an astrometrically-defined sample of CSs parallaxes from Gaia DR3 as calibrators. The statistical scale is applied to infer distances of a significant number (~850) of Galactic PNe, for which we deliver a new catalog of PN distances. By adopting a circular velocity curve of the Galaxy, we also derive 3D peculiar velocities from DR3 proper motions and published radial velocities of a large sample (~300) of PN CSs. We date PN progenitors based both on the best chemical abundances culled from the literature and on CS kinematic properties, finding a confirmation of the first method with the second. The slope of the radial oxygen gradient of the Galactic Disk traced by the complete PNe sample amounts to -0.0144 +/- 0.00385 [dex/kpc]. Furthermore, by distinguishing between PNe with old (> 7.5 Gyr) and young (< 1 Gyr) progenitors, we estimate the gradient to be respectively -0.0121 +/- 0.00465 and -0.022 +/- 0.00758 [dex/kpc], thus disclosing a mild steepening since Galaxy formation, with a slope change of 0.01 dex. These results are in broad agreement with previous PN studies, but now based on DR3 Gaia analysis, and also in agreement with what traced by most other Galactic probes.