Modelling dusty planetary disks using secular perturbation theory

Abstract

Optical coronagraphic imaging of the circumstellar dust disk around β Pictoris reveals that the inner portion of the disk is warped, and this warp is typically attributed to the presence of a planetary system. Mouillet et al . (1997b) argue the warp is the result of a single planet on an inclined orbit, but the warp in their models are an artifact of their unphysical initial conditions. Using a more realistic set of initial conditions, at least two planets on mutually inclined orbits are required to produce the observed warp. The goal of this research is to find the two-planet configuration that best describes the warp in β Pictoris, using the more realistic set of initial conditions. This is accomplished via a parameter survey, where it is found that a ∼ 7 M J planet at 35 AU and a ∼ 3 M J planet at 131 AU, both on nearly circular orbits and inclined ∼ 2° to the disk mid-plane are able to accurately reproduce the observed warp in the β Pictoris disk.