The ALMA Survey of Gas Evolution of PROtoplanetary Disks (AGE-PRO): XII. Extreme millimetre variability detected in a Class II disc

TL;DR

This study reports an extremely rare millimetre wavelength variability in a Class II protoplanetary disk, likely caused by magnetic activity or binary interactions, challenging typical assumptions about disk emission stability.

Contribution

First detection of extreme millimetre variability in a Class II disk, linking it to magnetic phenomena or binary interactions, with detailed analysis of the variability's properties and potential mechanisms.

Findings

Millimetre flux decayed by a factor of 8 in less than an hour

Brightness decreased by a factor of 13 within 8 days

Variability likely caused by magnetic activity or binary interactions

Abstract

Variability of millimetre wavelength continuum emission from Class II protoplanetary disks is extremely rare, and when detected it is usually interpreted as originating from non-thermal emission mechanisms that relate to the host star itself rather than its disk. During observations made as part of the AGE-PRO ALMA Large program, significant variability in the brightness of the 2MASS J16202863-2442087 system was detected between individual executions. We report the observed properties of the variability detected at millimetre wavelengths and investigate potential driving mechanisms. To investigate the nature of the variability we construct a light curve from the continuum observations and analyse imaged constructed from both flaring and quiescent emission. We characterise the dust disk around the star through analysis in the image and visibility plane, and carry out kinematic analysis of the CO(2-1) emission from the gas disk. The continuum flux decays by a factor of 8 in less than an hour, and by a factor of 13 within 8 days. The peak brightness coincides with an expected brightness maximum extrapolated from the periodicity of previously observed optical variability. The flare is most likely the product of synchrotron emission in the close vicinity of the star. The nature of the millimetre flare closely resembles those detected in very close binary systems, and may be due to the interaction of magnetic fields in an as yet undetected binary. Alternatively if the central host is a single-star object, the flare may be due to the interaction of magnetic field loops at the stellar surface or a strong accretion burst.