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Visible Light Adaptive Optics Imaging of the Orion 218-354 Silhouette Disk

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  06 January 2014

Katherine B. Follette
Affiliation:
Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona, 933 N Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA kfollette@as.arizona.edu
Laird M. Close
Affiliation:
Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona, 933 N Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
Jared R. Males
Affiliation:
Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona, 933 N Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA NASA Sagan Fellow
Derek Kopon
Affiliation:
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Königstuhl 17, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
Ya-Lin Wu
Affiliation:
Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona, 933 N Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
Katie M. Morzinski
Affiliation:
Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona, 933 N Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA NASA Sagan Fellow kfollette@as.arizona.edu
Philip Hinz
Affiliation:
Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona, 933 N Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
Timothy J. Rodigas
Affiliation:
Steward Observatory, The University of Arizona, 933 N Cherry Ave, Tucson, AZ 85721, USA
Alfio Puglisi
Affiliation:
INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Largo E. Fermi 5, I-50125, Firenze, Italy
Simone Esposito
Affiliation:
INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Largo E. Fermi 5, I-50125, Firenze, Italy
Armando Riccardi
Affiliation:
INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Largo E. Fermi 5, I-50125, Firenze, Italy
Enrico Pinna
Affiliation:
INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Largo E. Fermi 5, I-50125, Firenze, Italy
Marco Xompero
Affiliation:
INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Largo E. Fermi 5, I-50125, Firenze, Italy
Runa Briguglio
Affiliation:
INAF - Osservatorio Astrofisico di Arcetri, Largo E. Fermi 5, I-50125, Firenze, Italy
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Abstract

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We present the first ground-based adaptive optics images of a silhouette disk. This disk, Orion 218-354, is seen in silhouette against the bright nebular background of Orion, and was resolved using the new Magellan Adaptive Secondary AO system and its VisAO camera in Simultaneous Differential Imaging (SDI) mode. PSF subtraction of Orion 218-354 reveals a disk ~1″ (400 AU) in radius, with the degree of absorption increasing steadily towards the center of the disk. By virtue of the central star being unsaturated, these data probe inward to a much smaller radius than previous HST images. Our data present a different picture than previous observers had hypothesized, namely that the disk is likely optically thin at Hα at least as far inward as ~20AU. In addition to being among the first high-resolution AO images taken in the optical on a large telescope, these data reveal the power of SDI imaging to illuminate disk structure, and speak to a bright future for visible AO imaging. Analysis of the results described briefly here can be found in full detail in Follette et al. (2013).

Type
Contributed Papers
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2013 

References

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