Spatially resolved spectroscopy of the outflow from the symbiotic Mira RX Puppis

We present and discuss long slit echelle spectra taken at various position angles in the nebula surrounding the symbiotic Mira RX Pup. The spectra were taken in the Hα spectral region and are spatially resolved. The fact that the nebula shows up only in the [NII] lines has enabled us to subtract the underlying point source spectrum, showing clearly the spatio-kinematic structure of the nebula. We confirm the presence of the elongated feature found by Paresce (1990) at PA=15^o, but not its high Hα /[NII] ratio. We also find no evidence for a jet, but a velocity decreasing with distance from the central object. A new nebular structure is found at ~ 90^o to the main feature. The split lines indicate a nebula expanding with velocities >=80 km s^-1, probably with a bipolar shape. Both nebulae are some 100s of times larger than the binary separation of RX Pup. Based on observations obtained at the 3.5m~NTT telescope of the European Southern Observatory.