Nobeyama Radio Observatory Report: Number 550

Abstract

Water-vapor masers around the semi-regular variable star R Crateris were monitored with the Japanese VLBI Network (J-Net) at the 22 GHz band during four epochs with intervals of one month. The relative proper motions and Doppler-velocity drifts of twelve maser features were measured. Most of them existed for longer than 80 days. The 3-D kinematics of the features indicates a bipolar expanding flow. The major axis of the asymmetric flow was estimated to be at P.A. = 136 deg. The existence of a bipolar outflow suggests that a Mira variable star had already formed a bipolar outflow. The water masers are in a region of apparent minimum radii of 1.3 x 10(exp 12) m and maximum radii of 2.6 x 10(exp 12) m, between which the expansion velocity ranges from 4.3 to 7.4 km s(exp - 1). These values suggest that the water masers are radially accelerated, but still gravitationally bound, in the water-maser region. The most positive and negative velocity-drifting features were found relatively close to the systemic velocity of the star. It was found that the blue-shifted features are apparently accelerated and the red-shifted apparently decelerated. The acceleration of only the blue-shifted features seems to be consistent with that of the expanding flow from the star.