Related papers: Shadow-Based Framework for Estimating Transition D…
We review recent progress in high-resolution imaging of scattered light from disks around young stellar objects. Many new disks have been discovered or imaged in scattered light, and improved instrumentation and observing techniques have…
Dust trapping accelerates the coagulation of dust particles, and thus it represents an initial step toward the formation of planetesimals. We report $H$-band (1.6 um) linear polarimetric observations and 0.87 mm interferometric continuum…
Recent observations of gaps and non-axisymmetric features in the dust distributions of transition disks have been interpreted as evidence of embedded massive protoplanets. However, comparing the predictions of planet-disk interaction models…
To reveal the structures of a transition disk around a young stellar object in Lupus, Sz 91, we have performed aperture synthesis 345 GHz continuum and CO(3--2) observations with the Submillimeter Array ($\sim1\arcsec$--3$\arcsec$…
We present a direct method for isolating the component of the starlight blocked by a planet as it transits its host star, and apply it to spectra of the bright transiting planet HD 189733b. We model the global shape of the stellar…
We present corrections for the change in the apparent scalelengths, central surface brightnesses and axis ratios due to the presence of dust in pure disk galaxies, as a function of inclination, central face-on opacity in the B-band…
PDS 70 is a unique system as it hosts a protoplanetary disk with two confirmed forming planets, making it an ideal target for characterizing dust in such disks. We present new high-contrast polarimetric differential imaging of PDS 70 using…
We study the structure of thick discs in extraordinary depth by reaching a surface brightness limit of $\mu_{r_{\rm deep}} \sim$28.5$-$29~mag arcsec$^{-2}$ with combined $g$,$r$,$i$ band images from the IAC Stripe 82 Legacy Project. We…
We propose that the two armed spiral features seen in visible Hubble Space Telescope images of scattered light in HD100546's circumstellar disk are caused by the illumination of a warped outer disk. A tilt of 6-15 degrees from the symmetry…
We present scattered light images of the TW Hya disk performed with SPHERE in PDI mode at 0.63, 0.79, 1.24 and 1.62 micron. We also present H2/H3-band ADI observations. Three distinct radial depressions in the polarized intensity…
Imaging circumstellar disks in the near-infrared provides unprecedented information about the formation and evolution of planetary systems. However, current post-processing techniques for high-contrast imaging using ground-based telescopes…
We investigate the evolution of galactic disks in N-body Tree-SPH simulations. We find that disks, initially truncated at three scale-lengths, can triple their radial extent, solely driven by secular evolution. Both Type I (single…
Using only physical mechanisms, i.e., 3D MHD with no phenomenological viscosity, we have simulated the dynamics of a moderately thin accretion disk subject to torques whose radial scaling mimics those produced by lowest-order post-Newtonian…
Many protostellar gapped and binary discs show misalignments between their inner and outer discs; in some cases, $\sim70$ degree misalignments have been observed. Here we show that these misalignments can be generated through a "secular…
For a given a normally hyperbolic invariant manifold, whose stable and unstable manifolds intersect transversally, we consider several tools and techniques to detect trajectories with prescribed itineraries: the scattering map, the…
We have obtained millimeter wavelength photometry, high-resolution optical spectroscopy and adaptive optics near-infrared imaging for a sample of 26 Spitzer-selected transition circumstellar disks. All of our targets are located in the…
Context. The analysis of observations of circumstellar disks around young stellar objects is often based on models with a smooth and continuous density distribution. However, spatially resolved observations with increasing angular…
Interstellar dust plays a central role in the evolution of galaxies by shaping star formation, altering observed stellar properties, and redistributing radiation across the electromagnetic spectrum. In the Milky Way, dust is concentrated in…
Many of the most intriguing features, including spirals and cavities, in the current disc observations are found in binary systems like GG Tau, HD 142527 or HD 100453. Such features are evidence of the dynamic interaction between binary…
Our understanding of how exoplanets form and evolve relies on analyses of both the mineralogy of protoplanetary disks and their detailed structures; however, these key complementary aspects of disks are usually studied separately. We…