The ALMA View of the Edge-on Gomez’s Hamburger System: A Highly Dynamic, Asymmetric Protoplanetary Disk Reveals the Earliest Phases of Giant Planet Formation
17 affiliations
- 1University of Minnesota
- 2University of Virginia
- 3Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- 4Université Grenoble Alpes
- 5Institut de Radioastronomie Millimetrique (IRAM)
- 6Center for Astrophysics ∣
- 7Max Planck Institute for Astrophysics
- 8Max-Planck-Institut für Astronomie (MPIA)
- 9University of Michigan
- 10Univ. Bordeaux
- 11Université de Bordeaux
- 12Queen Mary University of London
- 13University of Leeds
- 14University of Belgrade
- 15The University of Arizona
- 16Zentrum für Astronomie der Universität Heidelberg
- 17University of Wisconsin–Madison
Abstract
Chemical tracers provide some of the strongest observational signatures of ongoing planet formation and localized dynamical perturbations in protoplanetary disks. In particular, sulfur-bearing molecules are predicted to be enhanced in regions of shock heating, ice sublimation, and gravitational instability. Here, we present high–angular resolution (≈0 . ″ 2) Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array observations of ¹² CO J = 3–2, ¹³ CO J = 3–2, CS J = 7–6, and SO J N = 8 ₈ –7 ₇ toward the large, edge-on Gomez’s Hamburger (“GoHam”; IRAS 18059-3211) disk. We detect a narrow, one-sided arc of SO emission that peaks near a previously identified gas overdensity, suggesting localized heating around an early-stage giant protoplanet or disk fragment. The edge-on geometry of GoHam enables us to place this chemical signature in the broader context of the disk gas and dust structure. To do so, we map the vertical distribution of molecular gas relative to millimeter- and (sub)micron-sized dust, identify a pronounced north–south continuum asymmetry, and detect non-Keplerian ¹² CO and ¹³ CO emission indicative of a disk wind. We also derive a dynamical stellar mass of 2.2 ± 0.5 M ⊙ and a revised dust extinction map–based distance of 139 ± 24 pc, which places GoHam in the outskirts of the Sco–Cen association. Together, these observations reveal a highly dynamic disk in which localized sulfur chemistry may trace one of the earliest observable stages of wide-separation giant planet formation.
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BibTeX
@article{law2026alma,
title = {{The ALMA View of the Edge-on Gomez’s Hamburger System: A Highly Dynamic, Asymmetric Protoplanetary Disk Reveals the Earliest Phases of Giant Planet Formation}},
author = {Charles J. Law and Jensen Lawrence and Richard Teague and Zhe-Yu Daniel Lin and Romane Le Gal and Kristina Monsch and Gordian Edenhofer and Hans Baehr and Edwin A. Bergin and L. Ilsedore Cleeves and Anne Dutrey and Coralie Foucher and Stéphane Guilloteau and Thomas J. Haworth and Thomas Henning and John D. Ilee and Marija R. Jankovic and Kamber R. Schwarz and Ilaria Pascucci and Dmitry Semenov and Ke Zhang},
journal = {The Astrophysical Journal},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3847/1538-4357/aea566},
url = {https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/aea566},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The ALMA View of the Edge-on Gomez’s Hamburger System: A Highly Dynamic, Asymmetric Protoplanetary Disk Reveals the Earliest Phases of Giant Planet Formation
AU - Charles J. Law
AU - Jensen Lawrence
AU - Richard Teague
AU - Zhe-Yu Daniel Lin
AU - Romane Le Gal
AU - Kristina Monsch
AU - Gordian Edenhofer
AU - Hans Baehr
AU - Edwin A. Bergin
AU - L. Ilsedore Cleeves
AU - Anne Dutrey
AU - Coralie Foucher
AU - Stéphane Guilloteau
AU - Thomas J. Haworth
AU - Thomas Henning
AU - John D. Ilee
AU - Marija R. Jankovic
AU - Kamber R. Schwarz
AU - Ilaria Pascucci
AU - Dmitry Semenov
AU - Ke Zhang
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/19
JO - The Astrophysical Journal
DO - 10.3847/1538-4357/aea566
UR - https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/aea566
AB - Chemical tracers provide some of the strongest observational signatures of ongoing planet formation and localized dynamical perturbations in protoplanetary disks. In particular, sulfur-bearing molecules are predicted to be enhanced in regions of shock heating, ice sublimation, and gravitational instability. Here, we present high–angular resolution (≈0 . ″ 2) Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array observations of ¹² CO J = 3–2, ¹³ CO J = 3–2, CS J = 7–6, and SO J N = 8 ₈ –7 ₇ toward the large, edge-on Gomez’s Hamburger (“GoHam”; IRAS 18059-3211) disk. We detect a narrow, one-sided arc of SO emission that peaks near a previously identified gas overdensity, suggesting localized heating around an early-stage giant protoplanet or disk fragment. The edge-on geometry of GoHam enables us to place this chemical signature in the broader context of the disk gas and dust structure. To do so, we map the vertical distribution of molecular gas relative to millimeter- and (sub)micron-sized dust, identify a pronounced north–south continuum asymmetry, and detect non-Keplerian ¹² CO and ¹³ CO emission indicative of a disk wind. We also derive a dynamical stellar mass of 2.2 ± 0.5 M ⊙ and a revised dust extinction map–based distance of 139 ± 24 pc, which places GoHam in the outskirts of the Sco–Cen association. Together, these observations reveal a highly dynamic disk in which localized sulfur chemistry may trace one of the earliest observable stages of wide-separation giant planet formation.
SN - 0004-637X
SN - 1538-4357
ER -