Fe II fluorescence and anomalous C IV doublet intensities in symbiotic novae

The variation of absolute intensities of Bowen-excited Fe II emission in the symbiotic stars RR Tel, RX Pup, and AG Peg is examined. The C IV doublet intensity ratios in RR Tel were not anomalous between 1979 and 1989, and the ratio had typical values within the optically thin range. The intensity of individual Fe II Bowen-excited lines is correlated with the C IV 1548.2 A flux, suggesting the presence of a foreground Fe II region in which fluorescent-excited material responds to flux variations of C IV 1548.2 A. In RX Pup the combined fluxes of Fe II Bowen-pumped lines can account for an appreciable fraction of the flux deficit in the C IV 1548.2 A line when the C IV doublet ratio is less than the optically thick limit of unity. The Fe II Bowen lines in RX Pup exhibit a velocity range from 0 to 80 km/s, where several strong Fe II emission lines correspond to deep absorption structure in the C IV 1548.2 A line profile. In AG Peg and C IV 1548.2 A flux deficit cannot be explained by Fe II fluorescent absorption alone when the C IV doublet ratio anomaly is at an extreme.