1,983 research outputs found
Resolving The Moth at Millimeter Wavelengths
HD 61005, also known as "The Moth," is one of only a handful of debris disks
that exhibit swept-back "wings" thought to be caused by interaction with the
ambient interstellar medium (ISM). We present 1.3 mm Submillimeter Array (SMA)
observations of the debris disk around HD 61005 at a spatial resolution of 1.9
arcsec that resolve the emission from large grains for the first time. The disk
exhibits a double-peaked morphology at millimeter wavelengths, consistent with
an optically thin ring viewed close to edge-on. To investigate the disk
structure and the properties of the dust grains we simultaneously model the
spatially resolved 1.3 mm visibilities and the unresolved spectral energy
distribution. The temperatures indicated by the SED are consistent with
expected temperatures for grains close to the blowout size located at radii
commensurate with the millimeter and scattered light data. We also perform a
visibility-domain analysis of the spatial distribution of millimeter-wavelength
flux, incorporating constraints on the disk geometry from scattered light
imaging, and find suggestive evidence of wavelength-dependent structure. The
millimeter-wavelength emission apparently originates predominantly from the
thin ring component rather than tracing the "wings" observed in scattered
light. The implied segregation of large dust grains in the ring is consistent
with an ISM-driven origin for the scattered light wings.Comment: 10 pages, 6 figure
The Structure of the DoAr 25 Circumstellar Disk
We present high spatial resolution (< 0.3" = 40\Sigma
\propto r^{-p}$ with p = 0.34, significantly less steep than a steady-state
accretion disk (p = 1) or the often adopted minimum mass solar nebula (p =
1.5). Even though the total mass of material is large (M_d = 0.10 M_sun), the
densities inferred in the inner disk for such a model may be too low to
facilitate any mode of planet formation. However, alternative models with
steeper density gradients (p = 1) can explain the observations equally well if
substantial grain growth in the planet formation region (r < 40 AU) has
occurred. We discuss these data in the context of such models with dust
properties that vary with radius and highlight their implications for
understanding disk evolution and the early stages of planet formation.Comment: ApJL in pres
ALMA Observations of the Largest Proto-Planetary Disk in the Orion Nebula, 114-426: A CO Silhouette
We present ALMA observations of the largest protoplanetary disk in the Orion
Nebula, 114-426. Detectable 345 GHz (856 micron) dust continuum is produced
only in the 350 AU central region of the ~1000 AU diameter silhouette seen
against the bright H-alpha background in HST images. Assuming optically thin
dust emission at 345 GHz, a gas-to-dust ratio of 100, and a grain temperature
of 20 K, the disk gas-mass is estimated to be 3.1 +/- 0.6 Jupiter masses. If
most solids and ices have have been incorporated into large grains, however,
this value is a lower limit. The disk is not detected in dense-gas tracers such
as HCO+ J=4-3, HCN J=4-3, or CS =7-6. These results may indicate that the
114-426 disk is evolved and depleted in some light organic compounds found in
molecular clouds. The CO J=3-2 line is seen in absorption against the bright 50
to 80 K background of the Orion A molecular cloud over the full spatial extent
and a little beyond the dust continuum emission. The CO absorption reaches a
depth of 27 K below the background CO emission at VLSR ~6.7 km/s about 0.52
arcseconds (210 AU) northeast and 12 K below the background CO emission at VLSR
~ 9.7 km/s about 0.34 arcseconds (140 AU) southwest of the suspected location
of the central star, implying that the embedded star has a mass less than 1
Solar mass .Comment: 20 pages, 4 figure
ALMA Observations of the Orion Proplyds
We present ALMA observations of protoplanetary disks ("proplyds") in the
Orion Nebula Cluster. We imaged 5 individual fields at 856um containing 22
HST-identified proplyds and detected 21 of them. Eight of those disks were
detected for the first time at submillimeter wavelengths, including the most
prominent, well-known proplyd in the entire Orion Nebula, 114-426. Thermal dust
emission in excess of any free-free component was measured in all but one of
the detected disks, and ranged between 1-163 mJy, with resulting disk masses of
0.3-79 Mjup. An additional 26 stars with no prior evidence of associated disks
in HST observations were also imaged within the 5 fields, but only 2 were
detected. The disk mass upper limits for the undetected targets, which include
OB stars, theta1Ori C and theta1Ori F, range from 0.1-0.6 Mjup. Combining these
ALMA data with previous SMA observations, we find a lack of massive (>3 Mjup)
disks in the extreme-UV dominated region of Orion, within 0.03 pc of O-star
theta1Ori C. At larger separations from theta1Ori C, in the far-UV dominated
region, there is a wide range of disk masses, similar to what is found in
low-mass star forming regions. Taken together, these results suggest that a
rapid dissipation of disk masses likely inhibits potential planet formation in
the extreme-UV dominated regions of OB associations, but leaves disks in the
far-UV dominated regions relatively unaffected.Comment: ApJ, in pres
Global, Multi-Objective Trajectory Optimization With Parametric Spreading
Mission design problems are often characterized by multiple, competing trajectory optimization objectives. Recent multi-objective trajectory optimization formulations enable generation of globally-optimal, Pareto solutions via a multi-objective genetic algorithm. A byproduct of these formulations is that clustering in design space can occur in evolving the population towards the Pareto front. This clustering can be a drawback, however, if parametric evaluations of design variables are desired. This effort addresses clustering by incorporating operators that encourage a uniform spread over specified design variables while maintaining Pareto front representation. The algorithm is demonstrated on a Neptune orbiter mission, and enhanced multidimensional visualization strategies are presented
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