Related papers: Observing Compact Disks Inside Pre-Planetary Nebul…

Circumbinary disks are common around post-asymptotic giant branch (post-AGB) stars with a stellar companion on orbital time scales of a few 100 to few 1000 days. The presence of a disk is usually inferred from the system's spectral energy…

Exploring the formation and evolution of second-generation circumbinary discs around evolved binary stars, such as post-Asymptotic Giant Branch (post-AGB) and post-Red Giant Branch (post-RGB) binaries, provides valuable insights into the…

We use ground-based imaging polarimetry to detect and image the dusty circumstellar envelopes of a sample of proto-planetary nebulae (PPNe) at near-infrared wavelengths. We detect extended (up to 9 arcsec diameter) circumstellar envelopes…

The morphology of planetary nebulae emerging from the common envelope phase of binary star evolution is investigated. Using initial conditions based on the numerical results of hydrodynamical simulations of the common envelope phase it is…

In this work we present the results of a systematic search for diffuse bands (DBs, hereafter) in the circumstellar envelopes of a carefully selected sample of post-AGB stars. We concentrated on the analysis of 9 of the DBs most commonly…

Over two decades ago, a prominent, mysterious emission band peaking at ~20.1 micrometer was serendipitously detected in four preplanetary nebulae (PPNe; also known as "protoplanetary nebulae"). So far, this spectral feature, designated as…

Intermediate mass stars (1-8 solar masses) evolve along the Asymptotic Giant Branch after completion of hydrogen and helium core burning. At the tip they lose for several ten to hundred thousand years copious amounts of mass and exhibit…

We present the results of a study performed with the goal to investigate whether low-mass pre-main sequence binary stars are formed by multiple fragmentation or via stellar capture. If binaries form preferentially by fragmentation, we…

Any model for the formation of elliptical planetary nebulae (PNs) should account for the positive correlation between the mass loss rate and the degree of departure from sphericity of the AGB progenitor's wind. I propose that this…

Stellar light from an AGB star is scattered by the circumstellar dust and polarized in the direction perpendicular to the source. Therefore, images of circumstellar envelopes around AGB stars in polarized light traces the dust distribution…

I examine the implications of the recently found extrasolar planets on the planet-induced axisymmetrical mass loss model for the formation of elliptical planetary nebulae (PNs). This model, which was developed in several earlier papers by…

We conduct three-dimensional hydrodynamical simulations of two opposite jets launched obliquely to the orbital plane around an asymptotic giant branch (AGB) star and within its dense wind, and demonstrate the formation of a `messy'…

We examine the envelope properties of asymptotic giant branch (AGB) stars as they evolve on the upper AGB and during the early post-AGB phase. Due to the high mass loss rate, the envelope mass decreases by more than an order of magnitude.…

We present the results of an expanded, long-term radial velocity search (25 yrs) for evidence of binarity in a sample of seven bright proto-planetary nebulae (PPNe). The goal is to investigate the widely-held view that the bipolar or…

Many disc-type post-asymptotic giant branch (post-AGB) stars are chemically peculiar, showing underabundances of refractory elements in their photospheres that correlate with condensation temperature. The aim of this paper is to investigate…

We still do not understand how planets form, or why extra-solar planetary systems are so different from our own solar system. But the last few years have dramatically changed our view of the discs of gas and dust around young stars.…

By examining their mass loss history and their distribution in the galaxy I argue that spherical planetary nebulae (PNe) form a special group among all planetary nebulae. The smooth surface brightness of most spherical PNe suggests that…

Close-binary central stars of planetary nebulae offer a unique tool with which to study the critical and yet poorly understood common-envelope phase of binary stellar evolution. Furthermore, as the nebula itself is thought to comprise the…

Many aspects of the evolutionary phase in which Asymptotic Giant Branch stars (AGB stars) are in transition to become Planetary Nebulae (PNe) are still poorly understood. An important question is how the circumstellar envelopes of AGB stars…

We present first preliminary results from AKARI/FIS pointed observations of post-AGB stars and planetary nebulae (PNe). A first analysis of the radial (azimuthally averaged) profile of the observed sources shows no evidence for excess…