IRC +10216

Starbox begin
name=CW LeonisStarbox observe
epoch=J2000
ra=09h 47m 57.38s
dec=+13° 16' 43.6"'
appmag_v=11.0
constell=Leo Starbox character
class=C
b-v=?
u-b=?
variable=None Starbox astrometry
radial_v=
prop_mo_ra=
prop_mo_dec=
parallax=
p_error=
absmag_v=?
- style="vertical-align: top;"
Distance
650 Ly Starbox detail
mass=1.5-4
radius=250
luminosity=20.000
temperature=2.300
metal=?
rotation=?
age= 10.000 - 30.000 Starbox catalog
names= CGCS 2619, V* CW Leo,PK 221+45 1, Zel 0945+135, RAFGL 1381, 2MASS J09475740+1316435, SCM 50.

IRC +10216 or CW Leonis is the brightest and best studied carbon star, but also a very peculiar one with the central star being embedded in a thick dust envelope. Therefore, its energy is emitted mostly at infrared wavelengths: in fact, IRC +10216 is the brightest object in the sky at a wavelength of 10 μm. Recent speckle observations (Weigelt et al. 1998 A&A,333,51, Haniff and Buscher 1998 A&A,334,5) are beginning to show the complex structure of the dust envelope.

CW Leonis is believed to be in a late stage of its life, blowing off its own sooty atmosphere to form a white dwarf in a distant future. Various chemical elements and molecules have been detected in the outflows from CW Leonis, among others nitrogen, oxygen and water, silicon and iron.

External links

* [http://antwrp.gsfc.nasa.gov/apod/ap010716.html Water Found Around Nearby Star CW Leonis ] NASA article.
* [http://www.physics.usyd.edu.au/~gekko/irc10216.html Variations in the dust envelope around IRC +10216] revealed by aperture masking interferometry
* [http://simbad.u-strasbg.fr/sim-id.pl?protocol=html&Ident=IRC+%2B10216 Simbad info for IRC +10216] including over 1200 articles discussing this object.
* http://jumk.de/astronomie/special-stars/cw-leonis.shtml