NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2010B-0394
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2010B-0394 |
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PI: Colette Salyk, University of Texas, csalyk@astro.as.utexas.edu
Address: McDonald Observatory, 1 University Station, C1402, Austin, TX 78712, United States
CoI: Klaus M. Pontoppidan, California Institute of Technology
CoI: Geoffrey A. Blake, California Institute of Technology
CoI: Rowin Meijerink, Leiden Observatory
Title: Water vapor in planet-forming regions: A new ground-based window on disk chemistry
Abstract:
We propose to obtain high resolution spectra of water gas-phase
lines in the N-band with Michelle toward two protoplanetary disks around
young solar-type stars in Taurus. Spitzer-IRS spectroscopy has shown
that protoplanetary disks around low-mass young stars are generally
blanketed in the mid-IR with strong molecular emission lines. However,
at the low spectral resolution of the IRS, the emission lines are
unresolved and blended, making their interpretation difficult, even in
the context of sophisticated radiative transfer disk models. Here we
propose to use the high spectral resolution of Michelle to separate and
spectrally resolve several water emission lines, to determine the origin
of the emission, and its variation from disk to disk. The brightest
disks in Ophiuchus have been successfully observed with VLT-VISIR; here,
we use the superior sensitivity of Michelle to observe two lower-
luminosity disks in Taurus. By demonstrating the feasibility of
efficient ground-based observations of water in disks, we will open a
new ground-based window on the chemistry of inner disks and the
transport of water in planet-forming regions.
National Optical Astronomy Observatory, 950 North Cherry Avenue, P.O. Box 26732, Tucson, Arizona 85726, Phone: (520) 318-8000, Fax: (520) 318-8360
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NOAO > Observing Info > Approved Programs > 2010B-0394 |
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