THE LATEST ERUPTION OF PLANETARY NEBULA IC 2165

Open slit high dispersion spectroscopic observations of the inner region of planetary nebula (PN) IC 2165 indicate that the object has a relatively uniform and high electron temperature, with its density being much larger close to the PN nucleus. Abundances imply that it is a non-type I PN. Calcium and iron have been heavily depleted into grains. The ionized mass is at least similar to 0.05 M-circle dot. A photoionization model (CLOUDY, version 10.00) assuming an inverse square law for the density, and abundances typical of a non-type I PN, produced a fair replica of the spectrum and of all electron density and temperature sensitive line ratios, but not of the global properties of this object. All evidence indicates that IC 2165 was produced by a metal poor 2 M-circle dot A5 V star that took off some 2 x 10(9) yr ago.