Assigned ID: 456 ----- Submission 1 (Fri Jan 27 22:04:17 GMT 2006) ----- The massive (>100 solar masses) stellar system, Eta Carinae, is immersed in its own CNO-processed material thrown out over the past 170 years. These nitrogen-rich, carbon- and oxygen-poor ejecta have enriched metal abundances and peculiar dust properties, most likely due to chemical processes and photo-excitation, not pre-ejection nuclear processes. The outermost ejecta, the Homunculus, is a well-defined warm, dusty neutral shell including at least ten solar masses of material. We propose to expand the STIS narrow line absorption studies to include VLT/UVES measures and obtain relative abundances of metals, some of which are not seen in the ISM due to dust formation. We thereby will provide information to dust experts on the differences of dust around Eta Carinae compared to normal ISM dust.

ISM AND CIRCUMSTELLAR MATTER 12 60000. false 0.0 false false false false false SUPPORTED