First scattered light detection of a nearly edge-on transition disk around the T Tauri star RY Lupi

¹ CRAL, UMR 5574, CNRS, Université Lyon 1, 9 avenue Charles André, 69561 Saint Genis Laval Cedex, France
e-mail: maud.langlois@univ-lyon1.fr
² Aix-Marseille Université, CNRS, Laboratoire d’Astrophysique de Marseille, (LAM) UMR 7326, 13388 Marseille, France
³ Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Königstuhl 17, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany
⁴ Heidelberg University, Institute of Theoretical Astrophysics, Albert-Ueberle-Str. 2, 69120 Heidelberg, Germany
⁵ Univ. Grenoble Alpes, CNRS, IPAG, 38000 Grenoble, France
⁶ INAF-Osservatorio Astronomico di Padova, Vicolo dell Osservatorio 5, 35122 Padova, Italy
⁷ LESIA, Observatoire de Paris, PSL Research University, CNRS, Sorbonne Universités, UPMC Univ. Paris 06, Univ. Paris Diderot, Sorbonne Paris Cité, 5 place Jules Janssen, 92195 Meudon, France
⁸ Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098 XH wAmsterdam, The Netherlands
⁹ ETH Zurich, Institute for Astronomy, Wolfgang Pauli Strasse 27, CH 8093, Zurich, Switzerland
¹⁰ Observatoire Astronomique, Université de Genève, 51 Ch. des Maillettes, 1290 Versoix, Switzerland
¹¹ Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, PO Box 9513, 2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands
¹² Department of Astronomy, Stockholm University, AlbaNova University Center, 10691 Stockholm, Sweden
¹³ Osservatorio Astrofisico di Catania, via S.Sofia 78, 95123 Catania, Italy
¹⁴ Anton Pannekoek Institute for Astronomy, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098 XH Amsterdam, The Netherlands
¹⁵ Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge, Madingley Road, Cambridge 3 0HA, UK
¹⁶ European Southern Observatory, Karl-Schwarzschild-Strasse 2, 85748 Garching bei Munchen, Germany
¹⁷ INAF, Astrophysical Observatory of Capodimonte, Salita Moiariello 16, 80131 Napoli, Italy
¹⁸ ONERA, 29 avenue de la Division Leclerc, 92322 Chatillon Cedex, France
¹⁹ NOVA Optical-Infrared Instrumentation Group at ASTRON, Oude Hoogeveensedijk 4, 7991 PD Dwingeloo, The Netherlands
²⁰ Space Telescope Science Institute, 3700 San Martin Drive, Baltimore, MD 21218, USA
²¹ INCT, Universidad De Atacama, calle Copayapu 485, Copiapó, Atacama, Chile
²² School of Earth & Space Exploration, Arizona State University, Tempe AZ 85287, USA
²³ Ural Federal University, Yekaterinburg 620002, Russia

Received: 21 July 2017
Accepted: 24 January 2018

Abstract

Context. Transition disks are considered sites of ongoing planet formation, and their dust and gas distributions could be signposts of embedded planets. The transition disk around the T Tauri star RY Lup has an inner dust cavity and displays a strong silicate emission feature.

Aims. Using high-resolution imaging we study the disk geometry, including non-axisymmetric features, and its surface dust grain, to gain a better understanding of the disk evolutionary process. Moreover, we search for companion candidates, possibly connected to the disk.

Methods. We obtained high-contrast and high angular resolution data in the near-infrared with the VLT/SPHERE extreme adaptive optics instrument whose goal is to study the planet formation by detecting and characterizing these planets and their formation environments through direct imaging. We performed polarimetric imaging of the RY Lup disk with IRDIS (at 1.6 μm), and obtained intensity images with the IRDIS dual-band imaging camera simultaneously with the IFS spectro-imager (0.9–1.3 μm).

Results. We resolved for the first time the scattered light from the nearly edge-on circumstellar disk around RY Lup, at projected separations in the 100 au range. The shape of the disk and its sharp features are clearly detectable at wavelengths ranging from 0.9 to 1.6 μm. We show that the observed morphology can be interpreted as spiral arms in the disk. This interpretation is supported by in-depth numerical simulations. We also demonstrate that these features can be produced by one planet interacting with the disk. We also detect several point sources which are classified as probable background objects.