# An Asymmetric Keplerian Disk Surrounding the O-type Protostar IRAS16547$-$4247

## TL;DR

This paper reports the first resolved Keplerian disk around a massive O-type protostar, IRAS16547$-$4247, revealing disk asymmetries, a binary system, and supporting star formation theories similar to lower-mass stars.

## Contribution

First high-resolution ALMA observation of a Keplerian disk around an O-type protostar, showing disk structure, asymmetries, and a binary system, advancing understanding of massive star formation.

## Key findings

- Resolved a Keplerian disk around IRAS16547$-$4247
- Detected a binary system at the disk center
- Estimated the central star's mass at approximately 20 solar masses

## Abstract

During the last decades, a great interest has emerged to know if even the most massive stars in our galaxy (namely the spectral O-type stars) are formed in a similar manner as the low- and intermediate-mass stars, that is, through the presence of accreting disks and powerful outflows. Here, using sensitive observations of the Atacama Large Millimeter/Submillimeter Array (ALMA), we report a resolved Keplerian disk (with fifteen synthesized beams across its major axis) surrounding the deeply embedded O-type protostar IRAS16547$-$4247. The disk shows some asymmetries that could arise because of the disk is unstable and fragmenting or maybe because of different excitation conditions within the disk. The enclosed mass estimated from the disk Keplerian radial velocities is 25$\pm$3 M$_\odot$. The molecular disk is at the base of an ionized thermal radio jet and is approximately perpendicular to the jet axis orientation. We additionally find the existence of a binary system of compact dusty objects at the center of the accreting disk, which indicates the possible formation of an O-type star and a companion of lower mass. This is not surprising due to the high binary fraction reported in massive stars. Subtracting the contribution of the dusty disk plus the envelope and the companion, we estimated a mass of 20 M$_\odot$ for the central star.