First-Light Debris Disk Science with the Gemini Planet Imager

这项工作将使用双子座天文台的新双子座行星成像仪（GPI）以前所未有的细节提供附近行星系统的地图。围绕其他恒星的行星系统与由称为碎片盘的尘埃组成的脆弱结构有关，这与我们太阳系的小行星和柯伊伯带相对应。观测结果将用于测试行星形成和演化的模型，数据简化管道将提供给天文学界。 PI和他的团队将在研究方面培训和指导研究生和本科生，并在加州大学洛杉矶分校的探索你的宇宙公共宣传活动中开发一个系外行星系统成像展览。GPI仪器是双子座天文台委托的一个新的日冕积分场单元。它能够探测和光谱特征的年轻木星行星达到1000万倍，比他们的母星星在分离接近0.2角秒。 该项目科学地利用了将在全球和平倡议的早期科学行动中获得的碎片盘的新的、高对比度的偏振图像。以前所未有的对比度和内部工作角度拍摄的碎片盘将揭示与行星相互作用的明显迹象，例如尘埃带的偏心率，表面密度不对称和间隙。将尘埃颗粒动态演化的分析和数值模型与辐射传输计算相结合，将能够对每个盘进行详细的散射光建模，目标是产生一个物理基础模型，对相关行星的质量和轨道参数进行严格限制。该项目的结果将用于根据专门的多年行星搜索活动得出的结果对行星特性进行独立估计，并提供关于每个系统动力学历史的独特观点。

This work will provide maps of nearby planetary systems in unprecedented detail using the new Gemini Planet Imager (GPI) with the Gemini Observatory. Planetary systems around other stars are associated with tenuous structures composed of dust known as debris disks, the counterpart of our solar system's asteroid and Kuiper belts. The observations will be used to test models of planet formation and evolution, and the data reduction pipeline will be made available to the astronomical community. The PI and his team will train and mentor graduate and undergraduate students in research, and develop an exoplanetary system imaging exhibit at UCLA's Exploring Your Universe public outreach event.The GPI instrument is a new coronagraphic integral field unit commissioned at the Gemini Observatory. It is capable of detecting and spectroscopically characterizing young Jovian planets reaching 10 million times fainter than their parent star at separations as close as 0.2 arcseconds. This project scientifically exploits new, high-contrast, polarimetric images of debris disks to be obtained in the early science operations of GPI. Debris disks imaged with unprecedented contrast and inner working angles will reveal distinct signs of interaction with planets, such as eccentricity of the dust belt, surface density asymmetries, and gaps. Coupling analytical and numerical models of the dynamical evolution of dust grains with radiative transfer calculations will enable detailed scattered-light modeling of each disk with the goal of producing a physically grounded model that gives strong constraints on the mass and orbital parameters of the related planet(s). The results of this project will be used to produce independent estimates of the planet properties from those derived from the dedicated, multi-year, planet-searching campaign, and provide a unique viewpoint on the dynamical history of each system.