Magnetic Accretion and HH 30 IRS
A lot of our recent research has focussed on the
edge-on disk system HH 30 IRS. In particular we are investigating the
effects of magnetic accretion stellar hotspots on the scattered light
images. The stellar hotspots act as a lighthouse, illuminating
different regions of the disk as the star rotates. This leads to a lateral
sloshing asymmetry in the scattered light images. Our unresolved
photometric monitoring shows that HH 30 IRS varies by over 1 mag over a few
days. High spatial resolution
observations will be able to detect the image variability. Below is a movie
showing the variability expected in HST observations if there are stable
hotspots on the stellar surface.
I-band simulation of
magnetic accretion in HH 30 IRS. The image is 400AU diameter.
And here are actual HST observations showing variability in the scattered
light disk and also the motion of jet knots. There are not enough HST
observations to really test the magnetic accretion scenario in HH 30 IRS.
As ever, we need more high resolution synoptic imaging...
Updated: May 2002