Several studies discussing imaging polarimetry observations of protoplanetary disks use the so-called radial Stokes parameters Qφ and Uφ to discuss the results. This approach has the advantage of ...providing a direct measure of the noise in the polarized images under the assumption that the polarization is only azimuthal, i.e., perpendicular to the direction toward the illuminating source. However, a detailed study of the validity of this assumption is currently missing. We aim to test whether departures from azimuthal polarization can naturally be produced by scattering processes in optically thick protoplanetary disks at near infrared wavelengths. We use the radiative transfer code MCFOST to create a generic model of a transition disk using different grain size distributions and dust masses. From these models we generate synthetic polarized images at 2.2 μm. We find that even for moderate inclinations (e.g., i = 40°), multiple scattering alone can produce significant (up to ~ 4.5% of the Qφ image, peak-to-peak) nonazimuthal polarization reflected in the Uφ images. We also find that different grain populations can naturally produce radial polarization (i.e., negative values in the Qφ images). Despite the simplifications of the models, our results suggest that caution is recommended when interpreting polarized images by only analyzing the Qφ and Uφ images. We find that there can be astrophysical signal in the Uφ images and negative values in the Qφ images, which indicate departures from azimuthal polarization. If significant signal is detected in the Uφ images, we recommend checking the standard Q and U images to look for departures from azimuthal polarization. On the positive side, signal in the Uφ images once all instrumental and data-reduction artifacts have been corrected for means that there is more information to be extracted regarding the dust population and particle density.
Context. Gaps, cavities, and rings in circumstellar disks are signposts of disk evolution and planet-disk interactions. We follow the recent suggestion that Herbig Ae/Be disks with a flared disk ...harbor a cavity, and investigate the disk around HD 97048. Aims. We aim to resolve the 34 ± 4 AU central cavity that has been predicted and to investigate the structure of the disk. Methods. We imaged the disk around HD 97048 using ALMA at 0.85 mm and 2.94 mm and ATCA (multiple frequency) observations. Our observations also include the 12CO J = 1−0, 12CO J = 3−2 and HCO+ J = 4−3 emission lines. Results. A central cavity in the disk around HD 97048 is resolved with a 40−46 AU radius. Additional radial structure present in the surface brightness profile can be accounted for either by an opacity gap at 90 AU or by an additional emitting ring at 150 AU. The continuum emission tracing the dust in the disk is detected out to 355 AU. The 12CO J = 3−2 disk is detected 2.4 times farther out. The 12CO emission can be traced down to ≈10 AU scales. Apparent non-Keplerian kinematics are detected inside the cavity on the HCO+ J = 4−3 velocity map. The mm spectral index measured from ATCA observations suggests that grain growth has occurred in the HD 97048 disk. Finally, we resolve a highly inclined disk out to 150 AU around the nearby 0.5 M⊙ binary ISO-ChaI 126. Conclusions. The data presented here reveal a cavity in the disk of HD 97048, and prominent radial structure in the surface brightness. The cavity size varies for different continuum frequencies and gas tracers. The gas inside the cavity follows non-Keplerian kinematics seen in HCO+ emission. The variable cavity size along with the kinematical signature suggests the presence of a substellar companion or a massive planet inside the cavity.
Context. Large cavities in disks are important testing grounds for the mechanisms proposed to drive disk evolution and dispersion, such as dynamical clearing by planets and photoevaporation. Aims. We ...aim to resolve the large cavity in the disk around HD 34282, whose presence has been predicted by previous studies modeling the spectral energy distribution of the disk. Methods. Using ALMA band 7 observations we studied HD 34282 with a spatial resolution of 0.10″ × 0.17′′ at 345 GHz. Results. We resolve the disk around HD 34282 into a ring between 0.24′′ and 1.15′′ (78+7-11 and 374+33-54 au adopting a distance of 325+29-47 pc). The emission in this ring shows azimuthal asymmetry centered at a radial distance of 0.46′′ and a position angle of 135° and an azimuthal FWHM of 51°. We detect CO emission both inside the disk cavity and as far out as 2.7 times the radial extent of the dust emission. Conclusions. Both the large disk cavity and the azimuthal structure in the disk around HD 34282 can be explained by the presence of a 50 Mjup brown dwarf companion at a separation of ≈0.1′′.
Context.
The mechanisms of planet formation are still under debate. We know little about how planets form, even if more than 4000 exoplanets have been detected to date. Recent investigations target ...the cot of newly born planets: the protoplanetary disk. At the first stages of their life, exoplanets still accrete material from the gas-rich disk in which they are embedded. Transitional disks are indeed disks that show peculiarities, such as gaps, spiral arms, and rings, which can be connected to the presence of substellar companions.
Aims.
To investigate what is responsible for these features, we selected all the known transitional disks in the solar neighborhood (<200 pc) that are visible from the southern hemisphere. We conducted a survey of 11 transitional disks with the SPHERE instrument at the Very Large Telescope. This is the largest H
α
survey that has been conducted so far to look for protoplanets. The observations were performed with the H
α
filter of ZIMPOL in order to target protoplanets that are still in the accretion stage. All the selected targets are very young stars, less than 20 Myr, and show low extinction in the visible.
Methods.
We reduced the ZIMPOL pupil stabilized data by applying the method of the angular spectral differential imaging (ASDI), which combines both techniques. The datacubes are composed of the Cnt_H
α
and the narrow band filter H
α
, which are taken simultaneously to permit the suppression of the speckle pattern. The principal component analysis method was employed for the reduction of the data. For each dataset, we derived the 5
σ
contrast limit and converted it in upper limits on the accretion luminosity.
Results.
We do not detect any new accreting substellar companions around the targeted transition disks down to an average contrast of 12 magnitudes at 0.′′2 from the central star. We have recovered the signal of the accreting M star companion around the star HD 142527. We have detected and resolved, for the first time in visible light, the quadruple system HD 98800. For every other system, we can exclude the presence of massive actively accreting companions, assuming that the accretion is not episodic and that the extinction is negligible. The mean accretion luminosity limit is 10
−6
L
⊙
at a separation of 0.′′2 from the host.
Models of planet formation and disc evolution predict a variety of observables in the dust structure of protoplanetary discs. Here, we present Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) ...Band-6 and Band-7 observations of the transition disc Sz 91 showing that the continuum emission at 870 μm, which is dominated by emission from large dust grains, is localized in an optically thin narrow ring. We find that most of the emission (∼95 per cent) is concentrated in a ring located at 110 au from the central star that is only about 44 au wide. In contrast, the 12CO (2–1) emission peaks closer to the star and is detected up to ∼488 au from the star. The concentration of large grains in a ring-like structure while the gas disc extends much further in and further out is in qualitative agreement with predictions of hydrodynamical models of planet–disc interactions including radial drift and gas drag.
We analyze the dust morphology of 29 transition disks (TDs) observed with Atacama Large (sub-)Millimeter Array (ALMA) at (sub-)millimeter emission. We perform the analysis in the visibility plane to ...characterize the total flux, cavity size, and shape of the ring-like structure. First, we found that the Mdust-M relation is much flatter for TDs than the observed trends from samples of class II sources in different star-forming regions. This relation demonstrates that cavities open in high (dust) mass disks, independent of the stellar mass. The flatness of this relation contradicts the idea that TDs are a more evolved set of disks. Two potential reasons (not mutually exclusive) may explain this flat relation: the emission is optically thick or/and millimeter-sized particles are trapped in a pressure bump. Second, we discuss our results of the cavity size and ring width in the context of different physical processes for cavity formation. Photoevaporation is an unlikely leading mechanism for the origin of the cavity of any of the targets in the sample. Embedded giant planets or dead zones remain as potential explanations. Although both models predict correlations between the cavity size and the ring shape for different stellar and disk properties, we demonstrate that with the current resolution of the observations, it is difficult to obtain these correlations. Future observations with higher angular resolution observations of TDs with ALMA will help discern between different potential origins of cavities in TDs.
Exocomets: A spectroscopic survey Rebollido, I.; Eiroa, C.; Montesinos, B. ...
Astronomy & astrophysics,
07/2020, Volume:
639
Journal Article, Web Resource
Peer reviewed
Open access
Context.
While exoplanets are now routinely detected, the detection of small bodies in extrasolar systems remains challenging. Since the discovery of sporadic events, which are interpreted to be ...exocomets (falling evaporating bodies) around
β
Pic in the early 1980s, only ∼20 stars have been reported to host exocomet-like events.
Aims.
We aim to expand the sample of known exocomet-host stars, as well as to monitor the hot-gas environment around stars with previously known exocometary activity.
Methods.
We have obtained high-resolution optical spectra of a heterogeneous sample of 117 main-sequence stars in the spectral type range from B8 to G8. The data were collected in 14 observing campaigns over the course of two years from both hemispheres. We analysed the Ca
II
K&H and Na
I
D lines in order to search for non-photospheric absorptions that originated in the circumstellar environment and for variable events that could be caused by the outgassing of exocomet-like bodies.
Results.
We detected non-photospheric absorptions towards 50% of the sample, thus attributing a circumstellar origin to half of the detections (i.e. 26% of the sample). Hot circumstellar gas was detected in the metallic lines inspected via narrow stable absorptions and/or variable blue- and red-shifted absorption events. Such variable events were found in 18 stars in the Ca
II
and/or Na
I
lines; six of them are reported in the context of this work for the first time. In some cases, the variations we report in the Ca
II
K line are similar to those observed in
β
Pic. While we do not find a significant trend in the age or location of the stars, we do find that the probability of finding CS gas in stars with larger
v
sin
i
is higher. We also find a weak trend with the presence of near-infrared excess and with anomalous (
λ
Boo-like) abundances, but this would require confirmation by expanding the sample.
Context. The Ophiuchus cloud complex is one of the best laboratories to study the earlier stages of the stellar and protoplanetary disc evolution. The wealth of accurate astrometric measurements ...contained in the Gaia Data Release 2 can be used to update the census of Ophiuchus member candidates. Aims. We seek to find potential new members of Ophiuchus and identify those surrounded by a circumstellar disc. Methods. We constructed a control sample composed of 188 bona fide Ophiuchus members. Using this sample as a reference we applied three different density-based machine learning clustering algorithms (DBSCAN, OPTICS, and HDBSCAN) to a sample drawn from the Gaia catalogue centred on the Ophiuchus cloud. The clustering analysis was applied in the five astrometric dimensions defined by the three-dimensional Cartesian space and the proper motions in right ascension and declination. Results. The three clustering algorithms systematically identify a similar set of candidate members in a main cluster with astrometric properties consistent with those of the control sample. The increased flexibility of the OPTICS and HDBSCAN algorithms enable these methods to identify a secondary cluster. We constructed a common sample containing 391 member candidates including 166 new objects, which have not yet been discussed in the literature. By combining the Gaia data with 2MASS and WISE photometry, we built the spectral energy distributions from 0.5 to 22 μm for a subset of 48 objects and found a total of 41 discs, including 11 Class II and 1 Class III new discs. Conclusions. Density-based clustering algorithms are a promising tool to identify candidate members of star forming regions in large astrometric databases. By combining the Gaia data with infrared catalogues, it is possible to discover new protoplanetary discs. If confirmed, the candidate members discussed in this work would represent an increment of roughly 40–50% of the current census of Ophiuchus.
Abstract
We present Atacama Large Millimeter/sub-millimeter Array Cycle-2 observations of the HBC 494 molecular outflow and envelope. HBC 494 is an FU Ori-like object embedded in the Orion A cloud ...and is associated with the reflection nebulae Re50 and Re50N. We use 12CO, 13CO and C18O spectral line data to independently describe the outflow and envelope structures associated with HBC 494. The moment-1 map of the 12CO emission shows the widest outflow cavities in a Class I object known to date (opening angle ∼150°). The morphology of the wide outflow is likely to be due to the interaction between winds originating in the inner disc and the surrounding envelope. The low-velocity blueshifted and redshifted 13CO and C18O emission trace the rotation and infall motion of the circumstellar envelope. Using molecular line data and adopting standard methods for correcting optical depth effects, we estimate its kinematic properties, including an outflow mass of the order of 10−1 M⊙. Considering the large estimated outflow mass for HBC 494, our results support recent theoretical work suggesting that wind-driven processes might dominate the evolution of protoplanetary discs via energetic outflows.
Context. High-resolution imaging reveals a large morphological variety of protoplanetary disks. To date, no constraints on their global evolution have been found from this census. An evolutionary ...classification of disks was proposed based on their IR spectral energy distribution, with the Group I sources showing a prominent cold component ascribed to an earlier stage of evolution than Group II. Aims. Disk evolution can be constrained from the comparison of disks with different properties. A first attempt at disk taxonomy is now possible thanks to the increasing number of high-resolution images of Herbig Ae/Be stars becoming available. Methods. Near-IR images of six Group II disks in scattered light were obtained with VLT/NACO in polarimetric differential imaging, which is the most efficient technique for imaging the light scattered by the disk material close to the stars. We compare the stellar/disk properties of this sample with those of well-studied Group I sources available from the literature. Results. Three Group II disks are detected. The brightness distribution in the disk of HD 163296 indicates the presence of a persistent ring-like structure with a possible connection with the CO snowline. A rather compact (<100 AU) disk is detected around HD 142666 and AK Sco. A taxonomic analysis of 17 Herbig Ae/Be sources reveals that the difference between Group I and Group II is due to the presence or absence of a large disk cavity (≳5 AU). There is no evidence supporting the evolution from Group I to Group II. Conclusions. Group II disks are not evolved versions of the Group I disks. Within the Group II disks, very different geometries exist (both self-shadowed and compact). HD 163296 could be the primordial version of a typical Group I disk. Other Group II disks, like AK Sco and HD 142666, could be smaller counterparts of Group I unable to open cavities as large as those of Group I.
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