Abstract
We report the discovery of a young, 016 binary, 2M2234+4041AB, found as the result of a Keck laser guide star adaptive optics imaging survey of young field ultracool dwarfs. Spatially resolved near-infrared photometry and spectroscopy indicate that the luminosity and temperature ratios of the system are near unity. From optical and near-infrared spectroscopy, we determine a composite spectral type of M6 for the system. Gravity-sensitive spectral features in the spectra of 2M2234+4041AB are best matched to those of young objects (1 Myr old). A comparison of the T eff and age of 2M2234+4041AB to evolutionary models indicates that the mass of each component is 0.10+0.075 -0.04 M ⊙. Emission lines of Hα in the composite optical spectrum of the system and Brγ in spatially resolved near-IR spectra of the two components indicate that the system is actively accreting. Both components of the system have IR excesses, indicating that they both harbor circumstellar disks. Though 2M2234+4041AB was originally identified as a young field dwarf, it lies 15 from the well-studied Herbig Ae/Be star, LkHα233. The distance to LkHα233 is typically assumed to be 880 pc. It is unlikely that 2M2234+4041AB could be this distant, as it would then be more luminous than any known Taurus objects of similar spectral type. We re-evaluate the distance to the LkHα233 group and find a value of 325 +72 -50 pc, based on the Hipparcos distance to a nearby B3-type group member (HD 213976). 2M2234+4041AB is the first low-mass star to be potentially associated with the LkHα233 group. At a distance of 325 pc, its projected physical separation is 51 AU, making it one of the growing number of wide, low-mass binaries found in young star-forming regions.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 824-835 |
Number of pages | 12 |
Journal | Astrophysical Journal |
Volume | 697 |
Issue number | 1 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - 2009 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Binaries: visual
- Infrared: stars
- Stars: formation
- Stars: low-mass, brown dwarfs
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Astronomy and Astrophysics
- Space and Planetary Science