G. S. Stringfellow, V. V. Gvaramadze, Y. Beletsky, A. Y. Kniazev
We have undertaken a near-IR spectral survey of stars associated with compact
nebulae recently revealed by the Spitzer and WISE imaging surveys. These
circumstellar nebulae, produced by massive evolved stars, display a variety of
symmetries and shapes and are often only evident at mid-IR wavelengths. Stars
associated with ~50 of these nebulae have been observed. We also obtained
recent spectra of previously confirmed (known) luminous blue variables (LBVs)
and candidate LBVs (cLBVs). The spectral similarity of the stars observed when
compared directly to known LBVs and Wolf-Rayet (WR) stars indicate many are
newly identified cLBVs, with a few being newly discovered WR stars, mostly of
WN8-9h spectral type. These results suggest that a large population of
previously unidentified cLBVs and related transitional stars reside in the
Galaxy and confirm that circumstellar nebulae are inherent to most (c)LBVs.
View original:
http://arxiv.org/abs/1112.2686
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