THE 0.5-2.22 {mu}m SCATTERED LIGHT SPECTRUM OF THE DISK AROUND TW Hya: DETECTION OF A PARTIALLY FILLED DISK GAP AT 80 AU
- Space Telescope Science Institute, Baltimore, MD 21218 (United States)
- University of Wyoming, Laramie, WY 82071 (United States)
- Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, DC 20015 (United States)
- Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States)
- Steward Observatory, University of Arizona, Tuscon, AZ 85721 (United States)
We present a 0.5-2.2 {mu}m scattered light spectrum of the circumstellar disk around TW Hya from a combination of spatially resolved Hubble Space Telescope STIS spectroscopy and NICMOS coronagraphic images of the disk. We investigate the morphology of the disk at distances >40 AU over this wide range of wavelengths, and identify the presence of a depression in surface brightness at {approx}80 AU that could be caused by a gap in the disk. Additionally, we quantify the surface brightness, azimuthal symmetry, and spectral character of the disk as a function of radius. Our analysis shows that the scattering efficiency of the dust is largely neutral to blue over the observed wavelengths. We model the disk as a steady {alpha}-disk with an ad hoc gap structure. The thermal properties of the disk are self-consistently calculated using a three-dimensional radiative transfer code that uses ray tracing to model the heating of the disk interior and scattered light images. We find a good fit to the data over a wide range of distances from the star if we use a model disk with a partially filled gap of 30% depth at 80 AU and with a self-similar truncation knee at 100 AU. The origin of the gap is unclear, but it could arise from a transition in the nature of the disk's dust composition or the presence of a planetary companion. Based on scalings to previous hydrodynamic simulations of gap-opening criteria for embedded proto-planets, we estimate that a planetary companion forming the gap could have a mass between 6 and 28 M{sub Circled-Plus }.
- OSTI ID:
- 22140215
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 771, 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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