Correlations of Optical and Infrared Excesses in T Tauri Stars
Abstract
The results of a survey of excess optical continuum emission (veiling) in a sample of 35 K7-M1 pre-main-sequence stars in Taurus-Auriga are reported. Stars with detectable veiling emission always show significant near-infrared K-L excesses. This result agrees with the prediction of a simple accretion disk model, where a boundary layer produces the veiling and the infrared excess comes from the disk. The K-N colors of T Tauri stars fall into two distinct groups: stars in the group with small or absent K-N excesses have no detectable veiling emission, while objects with large K-N excesses usually have detectable veiling. This result also agrees with the prediction of the disk model, where a large K-N excess indicates an optically thick disk, and an optically thick disk is required to generate a mass accretion rate large enough to produce detectable veiling.
- Publication:
-
The Astrophysical Journal
- Pub Date:
- May 1990
- DOI:
- 10.1086/185714
- Bibcode:
- 1990ApJ...354L..25H
- Keywords:
-
- Light Emission;
- Near Infrared Radiation;
- Stellar Radiation;
- T Tauri Stars;
- Accretion Disks;
- Boundary Layers;
- Cooling;
- Ionization;
- Radiative Transfer;
- Stellar Mass Accretion;
- Astrophysics;
- STARS: ACCRETION;
- STARS: FORMATION;
- STARS: PRE--MAIN-SEQUENCE