Size distribution of circumstellar disks in the Trapezium cluster
- Author(s)
- S. M. Vicente, J. Alves
- Abstract
In this paper we present results on the size distribution of
circumstellar disks in the Trapezium cluster as
measured from HST/WFPC2 data. Direct diameter measurements of a sample
of 135 bright proplyds and 14 silhouettes disks suggest that there is a
single population of disks well characterized by a power-law
distribution with an exponent of -1.9 ± 0.3 between disk
diameters 100-400 AU. For the stellar mass sampled (from late G to late
M stars) we find no obvious correlation between disk diameter and
stellar mass. We also find that there is no obvious correlation between
disk diameter and the projected distance to the ionizing Trapezium OB
stars. We estimate that about 40% of the disks in the Trapezium have
radius larger than 50 AU. We suggest that the origin of the Solar
system's (Kuiper belt) outer edge is likely to be due to the star
formation environment and disk destruction processes (photoevaporation,
collisions) present in the stellar cluster on which the Sun was probably
formed. Finally, we identified a previously unknown proplyd and named it
266-557, following convention.
- Organisation(s)
- External organisation(s)
- European Southern Observatory (Germany), Universidade Técnica de Lisboa
- Journal
- Astronomy & Astrophysics
- Volume
- 441
- Pages
- 195-205
- ISSN
- 0004-6361
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361:20053540
- Publication date
- 10-2005
- Peer reviewed
- Yes
- Austrian Fields of Science 2012
- 103004 Astrophysics
- Keywords
- Portal url
- https://ucrisportal.univie.ac.at/en/publications/size-distribution-of-circumstellar-disks-in-the-trapezium-cluster(a94adba4-5f3a-4532-a4b6-587f5c3020bd).html