IR Compendium: Fomalhaut || SPITZER HOME || SPITZER SCIENCE || COMPENDIUM HOME || EXAMPLES INDEX ||

Table of Contents

• Basic information
• Infrared Fluxes
• Spectral Energy Distributions
• Infrared Images
• Infrared Spectra
• Spitzer Observations
• Further Reading

Basic Information

• Common name:Fomalhaut

• Other names:HD 216956, IRAS 22549-2953, alpha PsA

• Position:RA= 22h57m39s Dec=-29d37m20.1s (J2000)

• Type: star with debris disk, A3V

• Parallax: 130.08 mas (HIPPARCOS Catalogue)

Like many other bright stars, Fomalhaut shows evidence of a Vega-like disk. Observations with ISO show disk structure which has been interpreted as a "clumpy" disk. By combining mid IR imaging and spectroscopy of circumstellar fine structure lines of carbon and oxygen, observers were able to obtain a direct measure of the cooling rate of the circumstellar disk with ISO. To greater constrain planetary formation models, observations were taken with ISO-LWS to determine the composition of dust and ice within the disk. This object is expected to saturate for long exposure times.

Infrared Fluxes

Spectral Energy Distributions

This SED was created using the sensitivity and saturation values available in November 2004. The black dots are the flux values from the above table. The green and red lines are the respective sensitivity and saturation limits for each instrument. The sensitivity values used are for a 5 sigma detection of a point source with a 500 second exposure.

Infrared images

DSS 2nd Generation Red (Search the DSS)

2MASS K band (Search the 2MASS Quicklook Image Server)

ISO-CAM 11.3 microns (Search the ISO archive)

5 degree IRAS 12 micron image centered on Fomalhaut ( Retrieve IRAS images using OASIS)

ISO-CAM 14.9 microns (Search the ISO archive)

24, 70, and 160 micron images from the MIPS instrument on Spitzer as published in Stapelfeldt et al, 2004 ApJS, 154, 458 ( Stapelfeldt et al, 2004, ApJS, 154, 548, or retrieve data using Leopard, AOR ID numbers 6627328,6627072, 6627840,6627584)

5 degree IRAS 100 micron image centered on Fomalhaut ( Retrieve IRAS images using OASIS)

Infrared Spectra

click images for full 2 to 40 micron spectra with ISO-SWS (Search the ISO archive)

click on image for full 40 to 200 micron spectra with ISO-LWS (Search the ISO archive)

Spitzer Observations

• This object is part of two GTO programs to obtain observations with all of the Spitzer instruments. (Program ID numbers 90, 1074, 1080)
  (You can download the AORs (Astronomical Observation Requests) for this object into Spot by using "View Program" under the "File" menu and entering these program IDs.)
• Search the ROC for planned observations

Further reading

• First Look at the Fomalhaut Debris Disk with the Spitzer Space Telescope, Stapelfeldt, K. R., Holmes, E. K., Chen, C., Rieke, G. H., Su, K. Y. L., Hines, D. C., Werner, M. W., Beichman, C. A., Jura, M., Padgett, D. L., Stansberry, J. A., Bendo, G., Cadien, J., Marengo, M., Thompson, T., Velusamy, T., Backus, C., Blaylock, M., Egami, E., Engelbracht, C. W., Frayer, D. T., Gordon, K. D., Keene, J., Latter, W. B., Megeath, T., Misselt, K., Morrison, J. E., Muzerolle, J., Noriega-Crespo, A., Van Cleve, J., Young, E. T., 2004, ApJS, 154, 458.
• The Geometry of Resonant Signatures in Debris Disks with Planets, Kuchner, M.J., Holman, M.J., 2003, ApJ, 588, 1110.
• Submillimeter Observations of an Asymmetric Dust Disk around Fomalhaut, Holland, W. S., Greaves, J. S., Dent, W. R. F., Wyatt, M. C., Zuckerman, B., Webb, R. A., McCarthy, C., Coulson, I. M., Robson, E. I., Gear, W. K., 2003, ApJ, 582, 1141.
• The ISO-SWS post-helium atlas of near-infrared stellar spectra, Vandenbussche, B., Beintema, D., de Graauw, T., Decin, L., Feuchtgruber, H., Heras, A., Kester, D., Lahuis, F., Lenorzer, A., Lorente, R., Salama, A., Waelkens, C., Waters, L., Wieprecht, E., 2002, A&A, 390, 1033.
• Collisional processes in extrasolar planetesimal discs - dust clumps in Fomalhaut's debris disc, Wyatt, M. C., Dent, W. R. F., 2002, MNRAS, 334, 589.
• A 25 micron search for Vega-like disks around main-sequence stars with ISO, Laureijs, R. J., Jourdain de Muizon, M., Leech, K., Siebenmorgen, R., Dominik, C., Habing, H. J., Trams, N., Kessler, M. F., 2002, A&A, 387, 285.
• ISOPHOT Observations of Dust Disks around Main Sequence (Vega-Like) Stars, Walker, H. J., Heinrichsen, I., 2000, Icarus, 143, 147.
• Infrared Photometry of beta Pictoris Type Systems, Fajardo-Acosta, S. B., Telesco, C. M., Knacke, R. F., 1998, AJ, 115, 2101.
• Infrared Space Observatory Mapping of 60 MU M Dust Emission Around Vega-type Systems, Fajardo-Acosta, S. B., Stencel, R. E., Backman, D. E., 1997, ApJ, 487, 151.