High-fidelity Imaging of the Inner AU Mic Debris Disk: Evidence of Differential 
Wind Sculpting?

Wisniewski, John P.; Kowalski, Adam F.; Davenport, James R. A.; Schneider, Glenn; Grady, Carol A.; Hebb, Leslie; Lawson, Kellen D.; Augereau, Jean-Charles; Boccaletti, Anthony; Brown, Alexander; Debes, John H.; Gaspar, Andras; Henning, Thomas K.; Hines, Dean C.; Kuchner, Marc J.; Lagrange, Anne-Marie; Milli, Julien; Sezestre, Elie; Stark, Christopher C.; Thalmann, Christian

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Journal Article

High-fidelity Imaging of the Inner AU Mic Debris Disk: Evidence of Differential Wind Sculpting?

MPS-Authors

Wisniewski, John P.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Kowalski, Adam F.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Davenport, James R. A.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Schneider, Glenn
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Grady, Carol A.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Hebb, Leslie
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Lawson, Kellen D.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Augereau, Jean-Charles
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Boccaletti, Anthony
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Brown, Alexander
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Debes, John H.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Gaspar, Andras
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Henning, Thomas K.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Hines, Dean C.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Kuchner, Marc J.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Lagrange, Anne-Marie
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Milli, Julien
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Sezestre, Elie
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Stark, Christopher C.
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

Thalmann, Christian
Max Planck Institute for Astronomy, Max Planck Society and Cooperation Partners;

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https://ui.adsabs.harvard.edu/abs/2019ApJ...883L...8W
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Citation

Wisniewski, J. P., Kowalski, A. F., Davenport, J. R. A., Schneider, G., Grady, C. A., Hebb, L., et al. (2019). High-fidelity Imaging of the Inner AU Mic Debris Disk: Evidence of Differential Wind Sculpting? The Astrophysical Journal, 883.

Cite as: https://hdl.handle.net/21.11116/0000-0005-D20E-F

Abstract

We present new high-fidelity optical coronagraphic imagery of the inner ∼50 au of AU Mic’s edge-on debris disk using the BAR5 occulter of the Hubble Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph (HST/STIS) obtained on 2018 July 26─27. This new imagery reveals that “feature A,” residing at a projected stellocentric separation of 14.2 au on the southeast side of the disk, exhibits an apparent “loop-like” morphology at the time of our observations. The loop has a projected width of 1.5 au and rises 2.3 au above the disk midplane. We also explored Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite photometric observations of AU Mic that are consistent with evidence of two starspot complexes in the system. The likely co- alignment of the stellar and disk rotational axes breaks degeneracies in detailed spot modeling, indicating that AU Mic’s projected magnetic field axis is offset from its rotational axis. We speculate that small grains in AU Mic’s disk could be sculpted by a time-dependent wind that is influenced by this offset magnetic field axis, analogous to co- rotating solar interaction regions that sculpt and influence the inner and outer regions of our own Heliosphere. Alternatively, if the observed spot modulation is indicative of a significant misalignment of the stellar and disk rotational axes, we suggest that the disk could still be sculpted by the differential equatorial versus polar wind that it sees with every stellar rotation.