Seeing Through the Ring: Near-Infrared Photometry of V582 Mon (KH 15D)

Abstract

We examine the light and color evolution of the T Tauri binary KH 15D through photometry obtained at wavelengths between 0.55 and 8.0 $\mu$m. The data were collected with ANDICAM on the 1.3 m SMARTS telescope at Cerro-Tololo Inter-American Observatory and with IRAC on the Spitzer Space Telescope. We show that the system's circumbinary ring, which acts as a screen that covers and uncovers different portions of the binary orbit as the ring precesses, has reached an orientation where the brighter component (star B) fully or nearly fully emerges during each orbital cycle. The fainter component (star A) remains fully occulted by the screen at all phases. The leading and trailing edges of the screen move across the sky at the same rate of $\sim$15 meters per second, consistent with expectation for a ring with a radius and width of $\sim$4 AU and a precession period of $\sim$6500 years. Light and color variations continue to indicate that the screen is sharp edged and opaque at \emph{VRIJH} wavelengths. However, we find an increasing transparency of the ring edge at 2.2, 3.6, and 4.5 $\mu$m. Reddening seen at the beginning of the eclipse that occurred during the CSI 2264 campaign particularly suggests selective extinction by a population of large dust grains. Meanwhile, the gradual bluing observed while star B is setting is indicative of forward scattering effects at the edge of the ring. The SED of the system at its bright phase shows no evidence of infrared excess emission that can be attributed to radiation from the ring or other dust component out to 8 microns.

Accepted for publication by The Astronomical Journal on February 2nd, 2016

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Cited by in corpus (5)

• Alignment of a circumbinary disc around an eccentric binary with application to KH 15D
• Optical and Radio Observations of the T Tauri Binary KH 15D (V582 Mon): Stellar Properties, Disk Mass Limit and Discovery of a CO Outflow
• The most variable VVV sources: eruptive protostars, dipping giants in the Nuclear Disc and others
• Untangling the Near-IR Spectral Features in the Protoplanetary Environment of KH 15D
• Double-peaked OI profile: a likely signature of the gaseous ring around KH 15D