An XMM-Newton EPIC X-ray view of the Symbiotic Star R~Aquarii

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We present the analysis of archival XMM-Newton European Photon Imaging Camera (EPIC) X-ray observations of the symbiotic star R Aquarii. We used the Extended Source Analysis Software package to disclose diffuse soft X-ray emission extending up to 2farcm2 (≈0.27 pc) from this binary system. The depth of these XMM-Newton EPIC observations reveals in unprecedented detail the spatial distribution of this diffuse emission, with a bipolar morphology spatially correlated with the optical nebula. The extended X-ray emission shares the same dominant soft X-ray-emitting temperature as the clumps in the jet-like feature resolved by Chandra in the vicinity of the binary system. The harder component in the jet might suggest that the gas cools down; however, the possible presence of nonthermal emission produced by the presence of a magnetic field collimating the mass ejection cannot be discarded. We propose that the ongoing precessing jet creates bipolar cavities filled with X-ray-emitting hot gas that feeds the more extended X-ray bubble as they get disrupted. These EPIC observations demonstrate that the jet feedback mechanism produced by an accreting disk around an evolved, low-mass star can blow hot bubbles, similar to those produced by jets arising from the nuclei of active galaxies. © 2022. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society.
J.A.T. acknowledges support by the Fundación Marcos Moshinsky (Mexico) and UNAM PAPIIT project IA101622 (Mexico). L.S. acknowledges support by UNAM PAPIIT project IN110122 (Mexico). M.A.G. acknowledges the support of grant PGC 2018-102184-B-I00 of the Ministerio de Educación, Innovación y Universidades cofunded with FEDER funds. G.R.-L. acknowledges support from CONACyT grant 263373. Y.H.C. acknowledges the grant MOST 110-2112-M-001-020 from the Ministry of Science and Technology (Taiwan). Based on observations obtained with XMM-Newton, an ESA science mission with instruments and contributions directly funded by ESA Member States and NASA. This research has made use of data obtained from the Chandra Data Archive and software provided by the Chandra X-ray Center (CXC) in the application package CIAO. This work has made extensive use of NASA's Astrophysics Data System.
With funding from the Spanish government through the Severo Ochoa Centre of Excellence accreditation SEV-2017-0709.