Context. A complex environment exists in the inner few astronomical units of planet-forming disks. High-angular-resolution observations play a key role in our understanding of the disk structure... Show moreContext. A complex environment exists in the inner few astronomical units of planet-forming disks. High-angular-resolution observations play a key role in our understanding of the disk structure and the dynamical processes at work.Aims: In this study we aim to characterize the mid-infrared brightness distribution of the inner disk of the young intermediate-mass star HD 163296 from early VLTI/MATISSE observations taken in the L- and N-bands. We put special emphasis on the detection of potential disk asymmetries.Methods: We use simple geometric models to fit the interferometric visibilities and closure phases. Our models include a smoothed ring, a flat disk with an inner cavity, and a 2D Gaussian. The models can account for disk inclination and for azimuthal asymmetries as well. We also perform numerical hydrodynamical simulations of the inner edge of the disk.Results: Our modeling reveals a significant brightness asymmetry in the L-band disk emission. The brightness maximum of the asymmetry is located at the NW part of the disk image, nearly at the position angle of the semimajor axis. The surface brightness ratio in the azimuthal variation is 3.5 ± 0.2. Comparing our result on the location of the asymmetry with other interferometric measurements, we confirm that the morphology of the r < 0.3 au disk region is time-variable. We propose that this asymmetric structure, located in or near the inner rim of the dusty disk, orbits the star. To find the physical origin of the asymmetry, we tested a hypothesis where a vortex is created by Rossby wave instability, and we find that a unique large-scale vortex may be compatible with our data. The half-light radius of the L-band-emitting region is 0.33 ±0.01 au, the inclination is 52°(-7°/+5°), and the position angle is 143° ± 3°. Our models predict that a non-negligible fraction of the L-band disk emission originates inside the dust sublimation radius for μm-sized grains. Refractory grains or large (≳10 μm-sized) grains could be the origin of this emission. N-band observations may also support a lack of small silicate grains in the innermost disk (r ≲ 0.6 au), in agreement with our findings from L-band data. Show less
Context. It is hypothesized that low-mass young stellar objects undergo eruptive phases during their early evolution. These eruptions are thought to be caused by highly increased mass accretion... Show moreContext. It is hypothesized that low-mass young stellar objects undergo eruptive phases during their early evolution. These eruptions are thought to be caused by highly increased mass accretion from the disk onto the star, and therefore play an important role in the early evolution of Sun-like stars, of their circumstellar disks (structure, dust composition), and in the formation of their planetary systems. The outburst of V1647 Ori between 2003 and 2006 offered a rare opportunity to investigate such an accretion event. Aims: By means of our interferometry observing campaign during this outburst, supplemented by other observations, we investigate the temporal evolution of the inner circumstellar structure of V1647 Ori, the region where Earth-like planets could be born. We also study the role of the changing extinction in the brightening of the object and separate it from the accretional brightening. Methods: We observed V1647 Ori with MIDI on the VLTI at two epochs in this outburst. First, during the slowly fading plateau phase (2005 March) and second, just before the rapid fading of the object (2005 September), which ended the outburst. We used the radiative transfer code MC3D to fit the interferometry data and the spectral energy distributions from five different epochs at different stages of the outburst. The comparison of these models allowed us to trace structural changes in the system on AU-scales. We also considered qualitative alternatives for the interpretation of our data. Results: We found that the disk and the envelope are similar to those of non-eruptive young stars and that the accretion rate varied during the outburst. We also found evidence for the increase of the inner radii of the circumstellar disk and envelope at the beginning of the outburst. Furthermore, the change of the interferometric visibilities indicates structural changes in the circumstellar material. We test a few scenarios to interpret these data. We also speculate that the changes are caused by the fading of the central source, which is not immediately followed by the fading of the outer regions. Conclusions: We found that most of our results fit in the canonical picture of young eruptive stars. Our study provided dynamical information from the regions of the innermost few AU of the system: changes of the inner radii of the disk and envelope. However, if the delay in the fading of the disk is responsible for the changes seen in the MIDI data, the effect should be confirmed by dynamical modeling. Based on observations made with ESO telescopes at the Paranal Observatory under program IDs 274.C-5026 and 076.C-0736. In addition, this work is based in part on archival data obtained with the Spitzer Space Telescope, which is operated by the Jet Propulsion Laboratory, California Institute of Technology under a contract with NASA. Show less
We present the first long baseline mid-infrared interferometric observations of the circumstellar disks surrounding Herbig Ae/Be stars. The observations were obtained using the mid-infrared... Show moreWe present the first long baseline mid-infrared interferometric observations of the circumstellar disks surrounding Herbig Ae/Be stars. The observations were obtained using the mid-infrared interferometric instrument MIDI at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Very Large Telescope Interferometer VLTI on Cerro Paranal. The 102 m baseline given by the telescopes UT1 and UT3 was employed, which provides a maximum full spatial resolution of 20 milli-arcsec (mas) at a wavelength of 10 μm. The interferometric signal was spectrally dispersed at a resolution of 30, giving spectrally resolved visibility information from 8 μm to 13.5 μm. We observed seven nearby Herbig Ae/Be stars and resolved all objects. The warm dust disk of HD 100546 could even be resolved in single-telescope imaging. Characteristic dimensions of the emitting regions at 10 μm are found to be from 1 AU to 10 AU. The 10 μm sizes of our sample stars correlate with the slope of the 10–25 μm infrared spectrum in the sense that the reddest objects are the largest ones. Such a correlation would be consistent with a different geometry in terms of flaring or flat (self-shadowed) disks for sources with strong or moderate mid-infrared excess, respectively. We compare the observed spectrally resolved visibilities with predictions based on existing models of passive centrally irradiated hydrostatic disks made to fit the SEDs of the observed stars. We find broad qualitative agreement of the spectral shape of visibilities corresponding to these models with our observations. Quantitatively, there are discrepancies that show the need for a next step in modelling of circumstellar disks, satisfying both the spatial constraints such as are now available from the MIDI observations and the flux constraints from the SEDs in a consistent way. Show less
Leinert, C.; Boekel, R. van; Waters, L.B.F.M.; Chesneau, O.; Malbet, F.; Köhler, R.; ... ; Weigelt, G. 2004
We present the first long baseline mid-infrared interferometric observations of the circumstellar disks surrounding Herbig Ae/Be stars. The observations were obtained using the mid-infrared... Show moreWe present the first long baseline mid-infrared interferometric observations of the circumstellar disks surrounding Herbig Ae/Be stars. The observations were obtained using the mid-infrared interferometric instrument MIDI at the European Southern Observatory (ESO) Very Large Telescope Interferometer VLTI on Cerro Paranal. The 102 m baseline given by the telescopes UT1 and UT3 was employed, which provides a maximum full spatial resolution of 20 milli-arcsec (mas) at a wavelength of 10 μm. The interferometric signal was spectrally dispersed at a resolution of 30, giving spectrally resolved visibility information from 8 μm to 13.5 μm. We observed seven nearby Herbig Ae/Be stars and resolved all objects. The warm dust disk of HD 100546 could even be resolved in single-telescope imaging. Characteristic dimensions of the emitting regions at 10 μm are found to be from 1 AU to 10 AU. The 10 μm sizes of our sample stars correlate with the slope of the 10–25 μm infrared spectrum in the sense that the reddest objects are the largest ones. Such a correlation would be consistent with a different geometry in terms of flaring or flat (self-shadowed) disks for sources with strong or moderate mid-infrared excess, respectively. We compare the observed spectrally resolved visibilities with predictions based on existing models of passive centrally irradiated hydrostatic disks made to fit the SEDs of the observed stars. We find broad qualitative agreement of the spectral shape of visibilities corresponding to these models with our observations. Quantitatively, there are discrepancies that show the need for a next step in modelling of circumstellar disks, satisfying both the spatial constraints such as are now available from the MIDI observations and the flux constraints from the SEDs in a consistent way. Show less
