THE NATURE OF TRANSITION CIRCUMSTELLAR DISKS. II. SOUTHERN MOLECULAR CLOUDS
- Departamento de Fisica y Astronomia, Universidad de Valparaiso, Valparaiso (Chile)
- Institute for Astronomy, University of Hawaii at Manoa, Honolulu, HI 96822 (United States)
- Herschel Science Centre, ESAC (ESA), P.O. Box 78, 28691 Villanueva de la Canada, Madrid (Spain)
- Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas, Rivadavia 1917, C1033AAJ Buenos Aires (Argentina)
- Department of Astronomy, University of Arizona, 933 North Cherry Avenue, Tucson, AZ 85721-0065 (United States)
- Las Campanas Observatory, Carnegie Observatories, Casilla 601, La Serena (Chile)
Transition disk objects are pre-main-sequence stars with little or no near-IR excess and significant far-IR excess, implying inner opacity holes in their disks. Here we present a multifrequency study of transition disk candidates located in Lupus I, III, IV, V, VI, Corona Australis, and Scorpius. Complementing the information provided by Spitzer with adaptive optics (AO) imaging (NaCo, VLT), submillimeter photometry (APEX), and echelle spectroscopy (Magellan, Du Pont Telescopes), we estimate the multiplicity, disk mass, and accretion rate for each object in our sample in order to identify the mechanism potentially responsible for its inner hole. We find that our transition disks show a rich diversity in their spectral energy distribution morphology, have disk masses ranging from {approx}<1 to 10 M{sub JUP}, and accretion rates ranging from {approx}<10{sup -11} to 10{sup -7.7} M{sub Sun} yr{sup -1}. Of the 17 bona fide transition disks in our sample, three, nine, three, and two objects are consistent with giant planet formation, grain growth, photoevaporation, and debris disks, respectively. Two disks could be circumbinary, which offers tidal truncation as an alternative origin of the inner hole. We find the same heterogeneity of the transition disk population in Lupus III, IV, and Corona Australis as in our previous analysis of transition disks in Ophiuchus while all transition disk candidates selected in Lupus V, VI turned out to be contaminating background asymptotic giant branch stars. All transition disks classified as photoevaporating disks have small disk masses, which indicates that photoevaporation must be less efficient than predicted by most recent models. The three systems that are excellent candidates for harboring giant planets potentially represent invaluable laboratories to study planet formation with the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array.
- OSTI ID:
- 22020445
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 749, Issue 1; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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