exoALMA. XVI. Predicting Signatures of Large-scale Turbulence in Protoplanetary Disks

Turbulent gas motions drive planet formation and protoplanetary disk evolution. However, empirical constraints on turbulence are scarce, halting our understanding of its nature. Resolving signatures of the large-scale perturbations driven by disk instabilities may reveal clues on the origin of turbu...

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Main Authors: Marcelo Barraza-Alfaro, Mario Flock, William Béthune, Richard Teague, Jaehan Bae, Myriam Benisty, Gianni Cataldi, Pietro Curone, Ian Czekala, Stefano Facchini, Daniele Fasano, Misato Fukagawa, Maria Galloway-Sprietsma, Himanshi Garg, Cassandra Hall, Jane Huang, John D. Ilee, Andrés F. Izquierdo, Kazuhiro Kanagawa, Eric W. Koch, Geoffroy Lesur, Cristiano Longarini, Ryan A. Loomis, Ryuta Orihara, Christophe Pinte, Daniel J. Price, Giovanni Rosotti, Jochen Stadler, Gaylor Wafflard-Fernandez, Andrew J. Winter, Lisa Wölfer, Hsi-Wei Yen, Tomohiro C. Yoshida, Brianna Zawadzki
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Language:English
Published: IOP Publishing 2025-01-01
Series:The Astrophysical Journal Letters
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Online Access:https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/adc42d
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author Marcelo Barraza-Alfaro
Mario Flock
William Béthune
Richard Teague
Jaehan Bae
Myriam Benisty
Gianni Cataldi
Pietro Curone
Ian Czekala
Stefano Facchini
Daniele Fasano
Misato Fukagawa
Maria Galloway-Sprietsma
Himanshi Garg
Cassandra Hall
Jane Huang
John D. Ilee
Andrés F. Izquierdo
Kazuhiro Kanagawa
Eric W. Koch
Geoffroy Lesur
Cristiano Longarini
Ryan A. Loomis
Ryuta Orihara
Christophe Pinte
Daniel J. Price
Giovanni Rosotti
Jochen Stadler
Gaylor Wafflard-Fernandez
Andrew J. Winter
Lisa Wölfer
Hsi-Wei Yen
Tomohiro C. Yoshida
Brianna Zawadzki
author_facet Marcelo Barraza-Alfaro
Mario Flock
William Béthune
Richard Teague
Jaehan Bae
Myriam Benisty
Gianni Cataldi
Pietro Curone
Ian Czekala
Stefano Facchini
Daniele Fasano
Misato Fukagawa
Maria Galloway-Sprietsma
Himanshi Garg
Cassandra Hall
Jane Huang
John D. Ilee
Andrés F. Izquierdo
Kazuhiro Kanagawa
Eric W. Koch
Geoffroy Lesur
Cristiano Longarini
Ryan A. Loomis
Ryuta Orihara
Christophe Pinte
Daniel J. Price
Giovanni Rosotti
Jochen Stadler
Gaylor Wafflard-Fernandez
Andrew J. Winter
Lisa Wölfer
Hsi-Wei Yen
Tomohiro C. Yoshida
Brianna Zawadzki
author_sort Marcelo Barraza-Alfaro
collection DOAJ
description Turbulent gas motions drive planet formation and protoplanetary disk evolution. However, empirical constraints on turbulence are scarce, halting our understanding of its nature. Resolving signatures of the large-scale perturbations driven by disk instabilities may reveal clues on the origin of turbulence in the outer regions of planet-forming disks. We aim to predict the observational signatures of such large-scale flows, as they would appear in high-resolution Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array observations of CO rotational lines, such as those conducted by the exoALMA Large Program. Post-processing 3D numerical simulations, we explored the observational signatures produced by three candidate (magneto)hydrodynamical instabilities to operate in the outer regions of protoplanetary disks: the vertical shear instability (VSI), the magnetorotational instability (MRI), and the gravitational instability (GI). We found that exoALMA-quality observations should capture signatures of the large-scale motions induced by these instabilities. Mainly, flows with ring, arc, and spiral morphologies are apparent in the residuals of synthetic velocity centroid maps. A qualitative comparison between our predictions and the perturbations recovered from exoALMA data suggests the presence of two laminar disks and a scarcity of ring- and arc-like VSI signatures within the sample. Spiral features produced by the MRI or the GI are still plausible in explaining observed disk perturbations. Supporting these scenarios requires further methodically comparing the predicted perturbations and the observed disks’ complex dynamic structure.
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spelling doaj-art-d8d3da85e9f545bc95bb391e30736a8e2025-08-20T03:19:02ZengIOP PublishingThe Astrophysical Journal Letters2041-82052025-01-019841L2110.3847/2041-8213/adc42dexoALMA. XVI. Predicting Signatures of Large-scale Turbulence in Protoplanetary DisksMarcelo Barraza-Alfaro0https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6378-7873Mario Flock1https://orcid.org/0000-0002-9298-3029William Béthune2https://orcid.org/0009-0001-2471-0336Richard Teague3https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1534-5186Jaehan Bae4https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7258-770XMyriam Benisty5https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7695-7605Gianni Cataldi6https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2700-9676Pietro Curone7https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2045-2154Ian Czekala8https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1483-8811Stefano Facchini9https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4689-2684Daniele Fasano10https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4679-4072Misato Fukagawa11https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1117-9213Maria Galloway-Sprietsma12https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5503-5476Himanshi Garg13https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5910-4598Cassandra Hall14https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8138-0425Jane Huang15https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6947-6072John D. Ilee16https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1008-1142Andrés F. Izquierdo17https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8446-3026Kazuhiro Kanagawa18https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7235-2417Eric W. Koch19https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9605-780XGeoffroy Lesur20https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8896-9435Cristiano Longarini21https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4663-0318Ryan A. Loomis22https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8932-1219Ryuta Orihara23https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4039-8933Christophe Pinte24https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5907-5179Daniel J. Price25https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4716-4235Giovanni Rosotti26https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4853-5736Jochen Stadler27https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0491-143XGaylor Wafflard-Fernandez28https://orcid.org/0000-0002-3468-9577Andrew J. Winter29https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7501-9801Lisa Wölfer30https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7212-2416Hsi-Wei Yen31https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1412-893XTomohiro C. Yoshida32https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8002-8473Brianna Zawadzki33https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9319-1296Department of Earth , Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; mbarraza@mit.eduMax-Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA) , Königstuhl 17, 69117 Heidelberg, GermanyDPHY, ONERA, Université Paris-Saclay , 91120, Palaiseau, FranceDepartment of Earth , Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; mbarraza@mit.eduDepartment of Astronomy, University of Florida , Gainesville, FL 32611, USAMax-Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA) , Königstuhl 17, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany; Université Côte d’Azur , Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, FranceNational Astronomical Observatory of Japan , 2-21-1 Osawa, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-8588, JapanDipartimento di Fisica, Università degli Studi di Milano , Via Celoria 16, 20133 Milano, Italy; Departamento de Astronomía, Universidad de Chile , Camino El Observatorio 1515, Las Condes, Santiago, ChileSchool of Physics & Astronomy, University of St. Andrews , North Haugh, St. Andrews KY16 9SS, UKDipartimento di Fisica, Università degli Studi di Milano , Via Celoria 16, 20133 Milano, ItalyUniversité Côte d’Azur , Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, FranceNational Astronomical Observatory of Japan , 2-21-1 Osawa, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-8588, JapanDepartment of Astronomy, University of Florida , Gainesville, FL 32611, USASchool of Physics and Astronomy, Monash University , Clayton VIC 3800, AustraliaDepartment of Physics and Astronomy, The University of Georgia , Athens, GA 30602, USA; Center for Simulational Physics, The University of Georgia , Athens, GA 30602, USA; Institute for Artificial Intelligence, The University of Georgia , Athens, GA 30602, USADepartment of Astronomy, Columbia University , 538 W. 120th Street, Pupin Hall, New York, NY 10027, USASchool of Physics and Astronomy, University of Leeds , Leeds, LS2 9JT, UKDepartment of Astronomy, University of Florida , Gainesville, FL 32611, USA; Leiden Observatory, Leiden University , P.O. Box 9513, NL-2300 RA Leiden, The Netherlands; European Southern Observatory , Karl-Schwarzschild-Str. 2, D-85748 Garching bei München, GermanyCollege of Science, Ibaraki University , 2-1-1 Bunkyo, Mito, Ibaraki 310-8512, JapanCenter for Astrophysics ∣ Harvard & Smithsonian , 60 Garden St., Cambridge, MA 02138, USAUniv. Grenoble Alpes , CNRS, IPAG, 38000 Grenoble, FranceDipartimento di Fisica, Università degli Studi di Milano , Via Celoria 16, 20133 Milano, Italy; Institute of Astronomy, University of Cambridge , Madingley Road, CB3 0HA, Cambridge, UKNational Radio Astronomy Observatory , 520 Edgemont Rd., Charlottesville, VA 22903, USACollege of Science, Ibaraki University , 2-1-1 Bunkyo, Mito, Ibaraki 310-8512, JapanSchool of Physics and Astronomy, Monash University , Clayton VIC 3800, Australia; Univ. Grenoble Alpes , CNRS, IPAG, 38000 Grenoble, FranceSchool of Physics and Astronomy, Monash University , Clayton VIC 3800, AustraliaDipartimento di Fisica, Università degli Studi di Milano , Via Celoria 16, 20133 Milano, ItalyUniversité Côte d’Azur , Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, FranceUniv. Grenoble Alpes , CNRS, IPAG, 38000 Grenoble, FranceMax-Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA) , Königstuhl 17, 69117 Heidelberg, Germany; Université Côte d’Azur , Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur, CNRS, Laboratoire Lagrange, FranceDepartment of Earth , Atmospheric, and Planetary Sciences, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge, MA 02139, USA ; mbarraza@mit.eduAcademia Sinica Institute of Astronomy & Astrophysics , 11F of Astronomy-Mathematics Building, AS/NTU, No. 1, Sec. 4, Roosevelt Rd., Taipei 10617, TaiwanNational Astronomical Observatory of Japan , 2-21-1 Osawa, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-8588, Japan; Department of Astronomical Science, The Graduate University for Advanced Studies , SOKENDAI, 2-21-1 Osawa, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-8588, JapanDepartment of Astronomy, Van Vleck Observatory, Wesleyan University , 96 Foss Hill Drive, Middletown, CT 06459, USA; Department of Astronomy & Astrophysics, 525 Davey Laboratory, The Pennsylvania State University , University Park, PA 16802, USATurbulent gas motions drive planet formation and protoplanetary disk evolution. However, empirical constraints on turbulence are scarce, halting our understanding of its nature. Resolving signatures of the large-scale perturbations driven by disk instabilities may reveal clues on the origin of turbulence in the outer regions of planet-forming disks. We aim to predict the observational signatures of such large-scale flows, as they would appear in high-resolution Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array observations of CO rotational lines, such as those conducted by the exoALMA Large Program. Post-processing 3D numerical simulations, we explored the observational signatures produced by three candidate (magneto)hydrodynamical instabilities to operate in the outer regions of protoplanetary disks: the vertical shear instability (VSI), the magnetorotational instability (MRI), and the gravitational instability (GI). We found that exoALMA-quality observations should capture signatures of the large-scale motions induced by these instabilities. Mainly, flows with ring, arc, and spiral morphologies are apparent in the residuals of synthetic velocity centroid maps. A qualitative comparison between our predictions and the perturbations recovered from exoALMA data suggests the presence of two laminar disks and a scarcity of ring- and arc-like VSI signatures within the sample. Spiral features produced by the MRI or the GI are still plausible in explaining observed disk perturbations. Supporting these scenarios requires further methodically comparing the predicted perturbations and the observed disks’ complex dynamic structure.https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/adc42dProtoplanetary disksPlanet formationHydrodynamical simulationsRadiative transfer simulations
spellingShingle Marcelo Barraza-Alfaro
Mario Flock
William Béthune
Richard Teague
Jaehan Bae
Myriam Benisty
Gianni Cataldi
Pietro Curone
Ian Czekala
Stefano Facchini
Daniele Fasano
Misato Fukagawa
Maria Galloway-Sprietsma
Himanshi Garg
Cassandra Hall
Jane Huang
John D. Ilee
Andrés F. Izquierdo
Kazuhiro Kanagawa
Eric W. Koch
Geoffroy Lesur
Cristiano Longarini
Ryan A. Loomis
Ryuta Orihara
Christophe Pinte
Daniel J. Price
Giovanni Rosotti
Jochen Stadler
Gaylor Wafflard-Fernandez
Andrew J. Winter
Lisa Wölfer
Hsi-Wei Yen
Tomohiro C. Yoshida
Brianna Zawadzki
exoALMA. XVI. Predicting Signatures of Large-scale Turbulence in Protoplanetary Disks
The Astrophysical Journal Letters
Protoplanetary disks
Planet formation
Hydrodynamical simulations
Radiative transfer simulations
title exoALMA. XVI. Predicting Signatures of Large-scale Turbulence in Protoplanetary Disks
title_full exoALMA. XVI. Predicting Signatures of Large-scale Turbulence in Protoplanetary Disks
title_fullStr exoALMA. XVI. Predicting Signatures of Large-scale Turbulence in Protoplanetary Disks
title_full_unstemmed exoALMA. XVI. Predicting Signatures of Large-scale Turbulence in Protoplanetary Disks
title_short exoALMA. XVI. Predicting Signatures of Large-scale Turbulence in Protoplanetary Disks
title_sort exoalma xvi predicting signatures of large scale turbulence in protoplanetary disks
topic Protoplanetary disks
Planet formation
Hydrodynamical simulations
Radiative transfer simulations
url https://doi.org/10.3847/2041-8213/adc42d
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