NGC 3242 and the enigmatic nature of its Low Ionization Structures: A MUSE perspective

The objective of our study was the spectroscopic analysis of the PN NGC 3242, which contains a pair of low-ionization structures (LISs). For our analysis, MUSE data were used in conjunction with the SATELLITE code for a spectroscopic analysis in two spatial dimensions. Additionally, infrared images from Spitzer Space Telescope (SST) were employed to search for potential H 2 emission at the LISs. The preliminary results revealed that the electron temperature calculated from [N II] diagnostics lines is approximately 12,000 K at the LISs, while the thorough examination of MUSE data has led to the identification of the [C I] 8727 Å emission line emitted only from the LISs. This result may imply that LISs are the optical counterpart of a dense molecular core. Spitzer’s data didn’t reveal the existence of H 2 at LISs, but three rings were identified around the main body of the PN.