Probing the envelopes of massive young stellar objects with diffraction limited mid-infrared imaging

Wheelwright, H. E.; Wit, W. J. de; Oudmaijer, R. D.; Hoare, M. G.; Lumsden, S. L.; Fujiyoshi, Takuya; Close, J. L.

doi:10.1051/0004-6361/201118689

Cited by 17 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 55 publications

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“…However, both numerical calculations by Zhang et al (2013) Table 4 for the fit parameters. Wheelwright et al (2012) indicate that outflow cavities probably play a more significant role at mid-infrared wavelengths. Therefore, caution is warranted in interpreting our N-band interferometric observations.…”

Section: Summary Of Modeling Results and The Structure Of Circumstellmentioning

confidence: 96%

A multi-wavelength interferometric study of the massive young stellar object IRAS 13481-6124

Boley

Kraus

Wit

et al. 2016

A&A

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We present new mid-infrared interferometric observations of the massive young stellar object IRAS 13481-6124, using VLTI/MIDI for spectrally-resolved, long-baseline measurements (projected baselines up to ∼120 m) and GSO/T-ReCS for aperture-masking interferometry in five narrow-band filters (projected baselines of ∼1.8−6.4 m) in the wavelength range of 7.5−13 μm. We combine these measurements with previously-published interferometric observations in the K and N bands in order to assemble the largest collection of infrared interferometric observations for a massive YSO to date. Using a combination of geometric and radiativetransfer models, we confirm the detection at mid-infrared wavelengths of the disk previously inferred from near-infrared observations. We show that the outflow cavity is also detected at both near-and mid-infrared wavelengths, and in fact dominates the mid-infrared emission in terms of total flux. For the disk, we derive the inner radius (∼1.8 mas or ∼6.5 AU at 3.6 kpc), temperature at the inner rim (∼1760 K), inclination (∼48• ) and position angle (∼107 • ). We determine that the mass of the disk cannot be constrained without high-resolution observations in the (sub-)millimeter regime or observations of the disk kinematics, and could be anywhere from ∼10 −3 to 20 M . Finally, we discuss the prospects of interpreting the spectral energy distributions of deeply-embedded massive YSOs, and warn against attempting to infer disk properties from the spectral energy distribution.

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Section: Summary Of Modeling Results and The Structure Of Circumstellmentioning

confidence: 96%

A multi-wavelength interferometric study of the massive young stellar object IRAS 13481-6124

Boley

Kraus

Wit

et al. 2016

A&A

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“…They probed complex large-scale structure, with hints of a disk at smaller scales. The observations used in our study of the source consist of the MIDI observations from de Wit et al ( 2010), the COMICS image presented in Wheelwright et al (2012) and an SED compiled from the RMS database and de .…”

Section: Appendix A: In-depth Presentations Of Each Sourcementioning

confidence: 99%

Unveiling the traits of massive young stellar objects through a multi-scale survey

Frost

Oudmaijer

Wit

et al. 2021

A&A

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Context. The rarity and deeply embedded nature of young massive stars has limited the understanding of the formation of stars with masses larger than 8 M⊙. Previous work has shown that complementing spectral energy distributions with interferometric and imaging data can probe the circumstellar environments of massive young stellar objects (MYSOs) well. However, complex studies of single objects often use different approaches in their analysis. Therefore the results of these studies cannot be directly compared. Aims. This work aims to obtain the physical characteristics of a sample of MYSOs at ~0.01″ scales, at ~0.1″ scales, and as a whole, which enables us to compare the characteristics of the sources. Methods. We apply the same multi-scale method and analysis to a sample of MYSOs. High-resolution interferometric data (MIDI/VLTI), near-diffraction-limited imaging data (VISIR/VLT, COMICS/Subaru), and a multi-wavelength spectral energy distribution are combined. By fitting simulated observables derived from 2.5D radiative transfer models of disk-outflow-envelope systems to our observations, the properties of the MYSOs are constrained. Results. We find that the observables of all the MYSOs can be reproduced by models with disk-outflow-envelope geometries, analogous to the Class I geometry associated with low-mass protostars. The characteristics of the envelopes and the cavities within them are very similar across our sample. On the other hand, the disks seem to differ between the objects, in particular with regards to what we interpret as evidence of complex structures and inner holes. Conclusions. The MYSOs of this sample have similar large-scale geometries, but variance is observed among their disk properties. This is comparable to the morphologies observed for low-mass young stellar objects. A strong correlation is found between the luminosity of the central MYSO and the size of the transition disk-like inner hole for the MYSOs, implying that photoevaporation or the presence of binary companions may be the cause.

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“…The object G012.9090−00.2607 (hereafter W33A) is a well known MYSO that has been studied extensively in recent years (de Wit et al 2010;Wheelwright et al 2012a), and thus offers a useful check of our models. The work of de Wit et al (2010) determined the inclination of the system to be 40 • < i < 70 • through modelling of the SED.…”

Section: A Test Of the Disc Models -W33amentioning

confidence: 99%

CO bandhead emission of massive young stellar objects: determining disc properties★

Ilee

Wheelwright

Oudmaijer

et al. 2013

Monthly Notices of the Royal Astronomical Society

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Massive stars play an important role in many areas of astrophysics, but numerous details regarding their formation remain unclear. In this paper we present and analyse high resolution (R ∼ 30 000) near-infrared 2.3 µm spectra of 20 massive young stellar objects from the RMS database, in the largest such study of CO first overtone bandhead emission to date. We fit the emission under the assumption it originates from a circumstellar disc in Keplerian rotation. We explore three approaches to modelling the physical conditions within the disc -a disc heated mainly via irradiation from the central star, a disc heated mainly via viscosity, and a disc in which the temperature and density are described analytically. We find that the models described by heating mechanisms are inappropriate because they do not provide good fits to the CO emission spectra. We therefore restrict our analysis to the analytic model, and obtain good fits to all objects that possess sufficiently strong CO emission, suggesting circumstellar discs are the source of this emission. On average, the temperature and density structure of the discs correspond to geometrically thin discs, spread across a wide range of inclinations. Essentially all the discs are located within the dust sublimation radius, providing strong evidence that the CO emission originates close to the central protostar, on astronomical unit scales. In addition, we show that the objects in our sample appear no different to the general population of MYSOs in the RMS database, based on their near-and mid-infrared colours. The combination of observations of a large sample of MYSOs with CO bandhead emission and our detailed modelling provide compelling evidence of the presence of small scale gaseous discs around such objects, supporting the scenario in which massive stars form via disc accretion.

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Probing the envelopes of massive young stellar objects with diffraction limited mid-infrared imaging

Cited by 17 publications

References 55 publications

A multi-wavelength interferometric study of the massive young stellar object IRAS 13481-6124

A multi-wavelength interferometric study of the massive young stellar object IRAS 13481-6124

Unveiling the traits of massive young stellar objects through a multi-scale survey

CO bandhead emission of massive young stellar objects: determining disc properties★

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