The AU MIC debris disk: Far-infrared and submillimeter resolved imaging
- National Research Council of Canada Herzberg Astronomy and Astrophysics Programs, 5071 West Saanich Road, Victoria, BC, V9E 2E7 (Canada)
- Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge, CB3 0HA (United Kingdom)
- SRON Netherlands Institute for Space Research, Groningen (Netherlands)
- Institute for Astronomy, University of Edinburgh, Royal Observatory, Blackford Hill, Edinburgh, EH9 3HJ (United Kingdom)
- Instituto de Astrofsica, Pontificia Universidad Católica de Chile, Vicua Mackenna 4860, 7820436 Macul, Santiago (Chile)
- Department of Astronomy, University of California, 601 Campbell Hall, Berkeley, CA 94720 (United States)
- Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)
- Institute of Astronomy KU Leuven, Celestijnenlaan 200D, B-3001 Leuven (Belgium)
- Department of Astronomy, AlbaNova University Centre, Stockholm University, SE-106 91 Stockholm (Sweden)
- Astronomy and Astrophysics Research Group, Department of Physics and Astrophysics, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Pleinlaan 2, B-1050 Brussels (Belgium)
- Joint ALMA Observatory, Alonso de Cordova 3107, Vitacura 763-0355, Santiago (Chile)
- Department of Earth and Space Sciences, Chalmers University of Technology, Onsala Space Observatory, SE-439 92, Onsala (Sweden)
- School of Physics and Astronomy, University of St. Andrews, North Haugh, St. Andrews, Fife KY16 9SS (United Kingdom)
- ESA, Scientific Support Office, Directorate of Science and Robotic Exploration, European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC/SRE-S), Keplerlaan 1, 2201 AZ Noordwijk (Netherlands)
We present far-infrared and submillimeter maps from the Herschel Space Observatory and the James Clerk Maxwell Telescope of the debris disk host star AU Microscopii. Disk emission is detected at 70, 160, 250, 350, 450, 500, and 850 μm. The disk is resolved at 70, 160, and 450 μm. In addition to the planetesimal belt, we detect thermal emission from AU Mic’s halo for the first time. In contrast to the scattered light images, no asymmetries are evident in the disk. The fractional luminosity of the disk is 3.9×10{sup −4} and its milimeter-grain dust mass is 0.01 M{sub ⊕} (±20%). We create a simple spatial model that reconciles the disk spectral energy distribution as a blackbody of 53 ± 2 K (a composite of 39 and 50 K components) and the presence of small (non-blackbody) grains which populate the extended halo. The best-fit model is consistent with the “birth ring” model explored in earlier works, i.e., an edge-on dust belt extending from 8.8 to 40 AU, but with an additional halo component with an r{sup −1.5} surface density profile extending to the limits of sensitivity (140 AU). We confirm that AU Mic does not exert enough radiation force to blow out grains. For stellar mass-loss rates of 10–100 times solar, compact (zero porosity) grains can only be removed if they are very small; consistently with previous work, if the porosity is 0.9, then grains approaching 0.1 μm can be removed via corpuscular forces (i.e., the stellar wind).
- OSTI ID:
- 22882529
- Journal Information:
- Astrophysical Journal, Vol. 811, Issue 2; Other Information: Country of input: International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA); Since 2009, the country of publication for this journal is the UK.; ISSN 0004-637X
- Country of Publication:
- United Kingdom
- Language:
- English
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