Newly identified carbon stars from sources with unusual IRAS low-resolution spectra

Abstract

The 11.2 μm SiC feature in either emission or absorption in the infrared is an important indicator for identification of carbon stars. Sources whose infrared spectra are sorted in Group U of the Infrared Astronomical Satellite (IRAS) low-resolution spectrum (LRS) are good samples for finding objects with the 11.2 μm SiC feature. Therefore, we have carefully checked all spectra in Group U of the LRS. We have found 13 new objects, which probably have SiC emission, sometimes with unusually broad features, that are presumed to be carbon-rich objects. In addition, their evolutionary types are also estimated from IRAS and Two Micron All Sky Survey two-color diagrams. Besides finding 13 new carbon-rich objects, another important result in this paper is that four sources are estimated as new extreme carbon stars (ECSs) and five previously known carbon stars sorted in the Group U of the IRAS LRS are also estimated as ECSs. © 2012. The American Astronomical Society. All rights reserved.