Models of the dust envelope of the unique object FG Sagittae

We use JHKLM photometric data obtained in 1998–2001 to model the dust envelope of the unique object FG Sge, which formed around the star after several consecutive cycles of dust condensation beginning in Autumn 1992. Models with a spherically symmetric, extended envelope consisting of a mixture of spherical particles of amorphous carbon and silicon carbide with an MRN size distribution were fitted to match the mean observed spectral energy distributions of FG Sge during brightness maximum and minimum after 1998 for two values of the luminosity and effective temperature of the central star. The stellar-wind parameters and mass-loss rate have been estimated in each case. The observational data for the brightness maximum and minimum cannot be described by models with a fixed luminosity or fixed distance to the star. This is a consequence of the object’s unusual behavior, with synchronous flux decreases in all the observed bands. The inability of the model to adequately describe the minimum-brightness state is probably associated with the abrupt disruption of the spherical symmetry of the envelope due to the formation of a small, dense dust cloud in the line of sight.