An early extrasolar planetary system revealed by planetesimal belts in β Pictoris

Yoshiko Kataza Okamoto (), Hirokazu Kataza, Mitsuhiko Honda, Takuya Yamashita, Takashi Onaka, Jun-ichi Watanabe, Takashi Miyata, Shigeyuki Sako, Takuya Fujiyoshi and Itsuki Sakon
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Yoshiko Kataza Okamoto: Kitasato University
Hirokazu Kataza: Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency
Mitsuhiko Honda: University of Tokyo
Takuya Yamashita: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
Takashi Onaka: University of Tokyo
Jun-ichi Watanabe: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
Takashi Miyata: University of Tokyo
Shigeyuki Sako: University of Tokyo
Takuya Fujiyoshi: National Astronomical Observatory of Japan
Itsuki Sakon: University of Tokyo

Nature, 2004, vol. 431, issue 7009, 660-663

Abstract: Abstract β Pictoris (β Pic) is a main-sequence star with an edge-on dust disk1,2,3 that might represent a state of the early Solar System. The dust does not seem to be a remnant from the original protoplanetary disk, but rather is thought to have been generated from large bodies like planetesimals and/or comets4,5. The history and composition of the parent bodies can therefore be revealed by determining the spatial distribution, grain size, composition and crystallinity of the dust through high-resolution mid-infrared observations. Here we report that the sub-micrometre amorphous silicate grains around β Pic have peaks in their distribution around 6, 16 and 30 au (1 au is the Sun–Earth distance), whereas the crystalline and micrometre-sized amorphous silicate grains are concentrated in the disk centre. As sub-micrometre grains are blown quickly out from the system by radiation pressure from the central star, the peaks indicate the locations of ongoing dust replenishment, which originates from ring-like distributions of planetesimals or ‘planetesimal belts’.

Date: 2004
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DOI: 10.1038/nature02948

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