High-contrast Polarimetry Observation of the T Tau Circumstellar Environment

Yi Yang, Satoshi Mayama, Saeko S. Hayashi, Jun Hashimoto, Roman Rafikov, Eiji Akiyama, Thayne Currie, Markus Janson, Munetake Momose, Takao Nakagawa, Daehyeon Oh, Tomoyuki Kudo, Nobuhiko Kusakabe, Lyu Abe, Wolfgang Brandner, Timothy D. Brandt, Joseph C. Carson, Sebastian Egner, Markus Feldt, Miwa Goto, Carol A. Grady, Olivier Guyon, Yutaka Hayano, Masahiko Hayashi, Thomas Henning, Klaus W. Hodapp, Miki Ishii, Masanori Iye, Ryo Kandori, Gillian R. Knapp, Jungmi Kwon, Masayuki Kuzuhara, Taro Matsuo, Michael W. Mcelwain, Shoken Miyama, Jun-Ichi Morino, Amaya Moro-martin, Tetsuo Nishimura, Tae-Soo Pyo, Eugene Serabyn, Takuya Suenaga, Hiroshi Suto, Ryuji Suzuki, Yasuhiro H. Takahashi, Michihiro Takami, Naruhisa Takato, Hiroshi Terada, Christian Thalmann, Edwin L. Turner, Makoto Watanabe, John Wisniewski, Toru Yamada, Hideki Takami, Tomonori Usuda, Motohide Tamura

We conducted high-contrast polarimetry observations of T Tau in the H-band, using the High Contrast Instrument for the Subaru Next Generation Adaptive Optics instrument mounted on the Subaru Telescope, revealing structures as near as 0.″1 from the stars T Tau N and T Tau S. The whole T Tau system is found to be surrounded by nebula-like envelopes, and several outflow-related structures are detected in these envelopes. We analyzed the detailed polarization patterns of the circumstellar structures near each component of this triple young star system and determined constraints on the circumstellar disks and outflow structures. We suggest that the nearly face-on circumstellar disk of T Tau N is no larger than 0.″8, or 117 au, in the northwest, based on the existence of a hole in this direction, and no larger than 0.″27, or 40 au, in the south. A new structure, “N5,” extends to about 0.″42, or 59 au, southwest of the star, and is believed to be part of the disk. We suggest that T Tau S is surrounded by a highly inclined circumbinary disk with a radius of about 0.″3, or 44 au, with a position angle of about 30°, that is misaligned with the orbit of the T Tau S binary. After analyzing the positions and polarization vector patterns of the outflow-related structures, we suggest that T Tau S should trigger the well-known E-W outflow, and is also likely to be responsible for a southwest precessing outflow “coil” and a possible south outflow.

The Astrophysical Journal

American Astronomical Society

861

2

133

10.3847/1538-4357/aac6c8