PF-10-0020

Searching for planets in protoplanetary disks using Halpha imaging and infrared imaging

Ruobing Dong

Planets form in protoplanetary disks. Directly detecting planets in disks provides a great avenue to study planet formation. However, few planets currently forming in disks have been found. I will introduce two ongoing programs in searching for planets in disks. In the first program, we have collected high resolution imaging observations of ~40 young stellar objects at optical wavelengths using the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (MUSE) instrument on the Very Large Telescope (VLT). The goal is to search for Halpha emitting point sources in those objects, which could be planets undergoing active accretion. In the second program we use the near infrared camera NIRCam onboard JWST to image five protoplanetary disk targets at the wavelengths of 2-4 um. The goal is to search for young planets in their infrared emission.