Issue |
A&A
Volume 495, Number 2, February IV 2009
|
|
---|---|---|
Page(s) | 523 - 535 | |
Section | Interstellar and circumstellar matter | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361:200811067 | |
Published online | 20 January 2009 |
VLT/NACO coronagraphic observations of fine structures in the disk of β Pictoris
1
LESIA, Observatoire de Paris-Meudon, 92195 Meudon, France e-mail: [anthony.boccaletti;pierre.baudoz]@obspm.fr
2
Laboratoire d'Astrophysique de Grenoble, Université Joseph Fourier, CNRS, UMR 5571, Grenoble, France e-mail: augereau@obs.ujf-grenoble.fr
3
Service d'Astrophysique, CEA Saclay, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France e-mail: epantin@cea.fr
Received:
1
October
2008
Accepted:
19
December
2008
Aims. We present ground-based observations of the disk around the A-type star β Pictoris to obtain scattered light images at the highest angular resolution (60 mas, equivalent to about 1 AU at the distance of the star) and the highest contrast in the very close environment of the star. The purpose of this program is to perform a close inspection of the inner disk morphology.
Methods. Images were collected with NACO, the AO-assisted near-IR instrument on the VLT (ESO) which includes two types of coronagraphs: classical Lyot masks and phase masks. In this program we took advantage of both types of coronagraphs in two spectral bands, H-band for the Lyot mask and Ks-band for the phase mask. The Lyot mask blocks a large central region around the star (radius <0.35´´) but allows deep integrations and hence good signal-to-noise ratio at large distances, while the phase mask allows imaging at very close separation (down to ~0.15´´ in theory) but conversely is more sensitive to residual aberrations. In addition, we simulated an extended object to understand the limitations in deconvolution of coronagraphic images.
Results. The reduced coronagraphic images allow us to carefully measure the
structures of the debris disk
and reveal a number of asymmetries of which some were not reported
before (position, elevation and thickness of the warp). Our analysis also demonstrates
the advantage of the phase mask coronagraph to explore the very
close environment of stars. In this program, the circumstellar
material is visible as close as 0.7´´ (AU) owing to the
phase mask while the Lyot mask generates artifacts which hamper the
detection of the dust at separations closer than 1.2´´ (
AU). The point source detection limit is compared to recently published observations of a planet candidate.
Finally, the simulations show that deconvolution of coronagraphic data may indeed produce artificial patterns within the image of a disk.
Key words: stars: individual: β Pic / stars: pre-main sequence / stars: planetary systems: formation / stars: circumstellar matter / methods: observational / techniques: high angular resolution
© ESO, 2009
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