Other
Scientific paper
Jun 2005
adsabs.harvard.edu/cgi-bin/nph-data_query?bibcode=2005sptz.prop20058s&link_type=abstract
Spitzer Proposal ID #20058
Other
Scientific paper
Circumstellar disks are now known to be common around young stellar objects. However, their dimensions and compositions are measured only with difficulty. Models suffer from lack of key constraints. The disk around the secondary in the epsilon Aurigae binary, in contrast, has some well-determined properties. A disk is inferred from eclipse circumstances to be a 20 AU diameter, viewed edge-on & partially covers the F0 supergiant primary star for 2 full years during the 27 year binary period. This disk was discovered to be a strong thermal IR source during the 1982-84 eclipse, in part by IRAS. We seek IRS & MIPS SED data to clarify the nature and evolutionary status of this large protoplanetary-like disk & help to better constrain a class of disk models. This is among the most massive stellar systems with a disk. Its dimensions are well-known from the eclipse light curve. Temperature of the disk facing us during eclipse is known from its IR SED; the composition & velocities of gas from the secondary are known from absorption lines detected in the last eclipse. The mass of the system & proximity of the disk to the luminous primary star let us explore extremes of circumstellar disk physics. The secondary now is near quadrature, the time of most rapidly changing geometric aspect, so that measurements now give best resolution of temperature versus azimuth angle around the disk. Our goals include: More precisely defining temperature & projected size of the disk-shaped IR-emitting secondary object via IRS and MIPS measurements; Searching with IRS for emission and absorption features, against the cool secondary; Determining grain composition & properties via the full range of SST spectroscopy coverage [IRS & MIPS SED]; Seeking evidence for mass-loss history in extended material around the system [MIPS]; Establishing baselines of these & other measures for comparison during forthcoming eclipse campaigns (2009). It is only with SST that these science goals can be accomplished.
Ake Thomas
Backman Dana
Guinan Edward
Stencel Robert
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