Abstract: Low-mass stars form as condensates of
gravitationally collapsing gas cores. As gas and dust falls toward the
centre of the core, a rotating disk structure is formed around the
young star. This structure is called a proto-planetary disk because it
is believed eventually to become the birthplace of a planetary
system. Although the general principles of disk formation is well
understood, little is known about the details of how proto-planetary
disks form and develop. The young stellar object L1489IRS (Taurus) is
known to be surrounded by such a disk-like structure. However, several
dissimilarities to proto-planetary disks around other YSOs of
comparable age, makes the L1489 disk peculiar, and it has been
suggested that this disk is very young [1]. In this talk, a detailed
2D model of the L1489 disk and its dynamical properties is
presented. This model is tested against observations ranging from
sub-millimetre to the near-infrared. Also, we will present a recently
obtained (and very preliminary) SMA image of the central parts of the
disk which will reveal if a real Keplerian proto-planetary disk
already resides within the surrounding gas.
[1] Hogerheijde, M. R. 2001, apj, 553, 618
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