Bowen excitation of NIII lines in symbiotic stars
We present a semi-empirical equation for prediction of the strengths of those N III lines that are generated by the Bowen mechanism and observed in spectra of symbiotic stars. The equation assumes that the Bowen mechanism is the only source populating the 3d state in N III, and comparisons with observations of the 3s-3p and 3p-3d transitions serve as a test of this assumption. In an ongoing study
