Proof for a wind from the hot component in the symbiotic system EG Andromedae.

Abstract

One of the most debated issue in symbiotic research concerns the nature of the hot component. In this Letter we give observational evidence that in the symbiotic binary EG And the hot compact star loses mass through a stellar wind. The wind velocity is ≈ 500 km s ^-1, and the mass loss rate is M^ṡ ≈ 5 × 10^-9 M_sun/yr. Since the cool giant companion also sheds a wind, the two winds must collide, creating some high energy phenomena with a luminosity of ≈ 0.1 L_sun.