Coordinated Space- and Ground-based Monitoring of Accretion Bursts in a Protoplanetary Disk: The Orbital and Accretion Properties of DQ Tau

TL;DR

This study analyzes the orbital and accretion behaviors of the eccentric binary DQ Tau using spectroscopy, revealing orbital parameter changes, accretion variability, and potential unseen companions, with implications for disk chemistry interpretation.

Contribution

It provides refined orbital parameters, explores causes of apsidal motion, and investigates accretion dynamics in DQ Tau, integrating spectroscopic data with JWST observations.

Findings

Refined orbital parameters and increased argument of periastron.

Detected accretion variability with phase-dependent dominance.

Estimated potential undetected companion mass at the disk cavity edge.

Abstract

Multiplicity in pre-main-sequence (PMS) systems shapes circumstellar and circumbinary disks, often producing features such as inner cavities, spiral arms, and gas streamers that facilitate mass transfer between the disk and stars. Consequently, accretion in eccentric close binaries is highly variable and synchronized with their orbits, producing bursts near periastron passages. In this study, we examine the orbital and accretion properties of the eccentric Classical T-Tauri binary DQ Tau using medium- to high-resolution spectroscopy from the Very Large Telescope (VLT) X-Shooter and UVES instruments. The data were taken during a monitoring of inner disk chemistry with JWST, and our analysis is needed for correct interpretation of JWST data. We refine the orbital parameters and report an increment in the argument of periastron of 30 degrees. This apsidal motion may be caused by the massive disk acting as a third body. We also explore the possibility that it is due to a still undetected additional (sub-)stellar companion, estimating a lower limit of 15 MJ for its mass at the cavity edge (a=3 abin). We investigate accretion of the primary and secondary using the Ca II 849.8 nm emission line. The primary accretes more at periastron than in previous quiescent phases, while the secondary dominates post-periastron. Additionally, we report elevated Lacc at apastron, possibly due to interaction with irregularly shaped structures near the closest approach to the circumbinary disk. Finally, we derive each star's accretion luminosity across disentangled epochs and compare it to UV-excess-based results, finding good agreement. The individual Lacc values can be used as input for chemical models.