Astronomy and Astrophysics – Astrophysics
Scientific paper
1999-06-14
Astronomy and Astrophysics
Astrophysics
14 pages including 1 figure. To appear in Astrophysical Journal Letters
Scientific paper
10.1086/312171
We present the first detection of the low-lying pure rotational emission lines of H2 from circumstellar disks around T~Tauri stars, using the Short Wavelength Spectrometer on the Infrared Space Observatory. These lines provide a direct measure of the total amount of warm molecular gas in disks. The J=2->0 S(0) line at 28.218 mum and the J=3->1 S(1) line at 17.035 mum have been observed toward the double binary system GG Tau. Together with limits on the J=5->3 S(3) and J=7->5 S(5) lines, the data suggest the presence of gas at T_kin=110+-10 K with a mass of (3.6+-2.0)x10^-3 M_sol (3sigma). This amounts to ~3% of the total gas + dust mass of the circumbinary disk as imaged by millimeter interferometry, but is larger than the estimated mass of the circumstellar disk(s). Possible origins for the warm gas seen in H2 are discussed in terms of photon and wind-shock heating mechanisms of the circumbinary material, and comparisons with model calculations are made.
Blake Geoffrey A.
Hogerheijde Michiel R.
Thi Wing-Fai
van Dishoeck Ewine F.
van Zadelhoff Gerd-Jan
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