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
Circumstellar disks around stars older than 10 Myr are expected to be gas-poor. There are, however, two examples of old (30-40 Myr) debris-like disks containing a detectable amount of cold CO gas.... Show moreCircumstellar disks around stars older than 10 Myr are expected to be gas-poor. There are, however, two examples of old (30-40 Myr) debris-like disks containing a detectable amount of cold CO gas. Here we present Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA) and Herschel Space Observatory observations of one of these disks, around HD 21997, and study the distribution and origin of the dust and its connection to the gas. Our ALMA continuum images at 886 {$μ$}m clearly resolve a broad ring of emission within a diameter of \~{}4.''5, adding HD 21997 to the dozen debris disks resolved at (sub)millimeter wavelengths. Modeling the morphology of the ALMA image with a radiative transfer code suggests inner and outer radii of \~{}55 and \~{}150 AU, and a dust mass of 0.09 M $_{⊕}$. Our data and modeling hints at an extended cold outskirt of the ring. Comparison with the morphology of the CO gas in the disk reveals an inner dust-free hole where gas nevertheless can be detected. Based on dust grain lifetimes, we propose that the dust content of this gaseous disk is of secondary origin and is produced by planetesimals. Since the gas component is probably primordial, HD 21997 is one of the first known examples of a hybrid circumstellar disk, a thus-far little studied late phase of circumstellar disk evolution. Show less
The 30 Myr old A3-type star HD 21997 is one of the two known debris dust disks having a measurable amount of cold molecular gas. With the goal of understanding the physical state, origin, and... Show moreThe 30 Myr old A3-type star HD 21997 is one of the two known debris dust disks having a measurable amount of cold molecular gas. With the goal of understanding the physical state, origin, and evolution of the gas in young debris disks, we obtained CO line observations with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA). Here, we report on the detection of $^{12}$CO and $^{13}$CO in the J = 2-1 and J = 3-2 transitions and C$^{18}$O in the J = 2-1 line. The gas exhibits a Keplerian velocity curve, one of the few direct measurements of Keplerian rotation in young debris disks. The measured CO brightness distribution could be reproduced by a simple star+disk system, whose parameters are r $_{in}$ {lt} 26 AU, r $_{out}$ = 138 {plusmn} 20 AU, M_*=1.8^{}${$+0.5$}$_${$-0.2$}$ M $_{⊙}$, and i = 32.{deg}6 {plusmn} 3.{deg}1. The total CO mass, as calculated from the optically thin C$^{18}$O line, is about (4-8) { imes} 10$^{-2}$ M $_{⊕}$, while the CO line ratios suggest a radiation temperature on the order of 6-9 K. Comparing our results with those obtained for the dust component of the HD 21997 disk from ALMA continuum observations by Moór et al., we conclude that comparable amounts of CO gas and dust are present in the disk. Interestingly, the gas and dust in the HD 21997 system are not colocated, indicating a dust-free inner gas disk within 55 AU of the star. We explore two possible scenarios for the origin of the gas. A secondary origin, which involves gas production from colliding or active planetesimals, would require unreasonably high gas production rates and would not explain why the gas and dust are not colocated. We propose that HD 21997 is a hybrid system where secondary debris dust and primordial gas coexist. HD 21997, whose age exceeds both the model predictions for disk clearing and the ages of the oldest T Tauri-like or transitional gas disks in the literature, may be a key object linking the primordial and the debris phases of disk evolution. Show less
