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Peer-reviewedCC BY 4.0The Astrophysical Journal

Mid-infrared Imaging of SR 12 c with JWST/MIRI: Grain Growth in an Evolved Circumplanetary Disk

  • Ya-Lin Wu1
  • Claire O. Finley2,3
  • Brendan P. Bowler3
  • Ning Chen1
  • Yuhiko Aoyama4
  • Gregory J. Herczeg5
  • Catherine C. Espaillat6
  • William Best2
  • Ian Czekala7
  • Katherine B. Follette8
  • Adam L. Kraus2
  • Raquel A. Martinez9
4 more authors
  • Connor E. Robinson10
  • Quang H. Tran11,12
  • Kimberly Ward-Duong13
  • Yifan Zhou14
14 affiliations
  1. 1National Taiwan Normal University
  2. 2University of Texas at Austin
  3. 3University of California
  4. 4Sun Yat-sen University
  5. 5Peking University
  6. 6Boston University
  7. 7University of St Andrews
  8. 8Amherst College
  9. 9University of San Diego
  10. 10Alfred University
  11. 11Yale University
  12. 12The University of Texas at Austin
  13. 13Smith College
  14. 14University of Virginia
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Abstract

The physical properties of circumplanetary disks offer insights into the formation of giant planets and their satellites. The circumbinary planetary-mass companion SR 12 c (1200 au from SR 12 AB) hosts an isolated dust disk directly detected with ALMA. We present JWST/MIRI imaging of SR 12 c from 5.6 to 21 μ m and analyze its spectral energy distribution from infrared to submillimeter wavelengths. Phenomenologically, the dust disk can be described by a two-component blackbody with large contrasts in characteristic temperatures and radii. Physically motivated models with varied geometries and heating mechanisms suggest a predominantly flat, irradiation-heated disk with a smaller contribution from viscous dissipation. The disk is inferred to be compact, with an inner radius of ∼3 R Jup . The outer radius is only loosely constrained, with a characteristic value of ∼3 au. The lack of strong 10 μ m excess emission suggests significant grain growth and dust settling. We also find that SR 12 c is broadly consistent with the empirical star–disk scaling relations, providing context for its possible formation pathway. These results demonstrate the power of combining mid-infrared and submillimeter observations with disk modeling to better understand the physical properties of circumplanetary disks.

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Cite

BibTeXRIS
BibTeX
@article{wu2026midinfrared,
  title = {{Mid-infrared Imaging of SR 12 c with JWST/MIRI: Grain Growth in an Evolved Circumplanetary Disk}},
  author = {Ya-Lin Wu and Claire O. Finley and Brendan P. Bowler and Ning Chen and Yuhiko Aoyama and Gregory J. Herczeg and Catherine C. Espaillat and William Best and Ian Czekala and Katherine B. Follette and Adam L. Kraus and Raquel A. Martinez and Connor E. Robinson and Quang H. Tran and Kimberly Ward-Duong and Yifan Zhou},
  journal = {The Astrophysical Journal},
  year = {2026},
  month = oct,
  doi = {10.3847/1538-4357/aea4a2},
  url = {https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/aea4a2},
  note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY  - JOUR
TI  - Mid-infrared Imaging of SR 12 c with JWST/MIRI: Grain Growth in an Evolved Circumplanetary Disk
AU  - Ya-Lin Wu
AU  - Claire O. Finley
AU  - Brendan P. Bowler
AU  - Ning Chen
AU  - Yuhiko Aoyama
AU  - Gregory J. Herczeg
AU  - Catherine C. Espaillat
AU  - William Best
AU  - Ian Czekala
AU  - Katherine B. Follette
AU  - Adam L. Kraus
AU  - Raquel A. Martinez
AU  - Connor E. Robinson
AU  - Quang H. Tran
AU  - Kimberly Ward-Duong
AU  - Yifan Zhou
PY  - 2026
DA  - 2026/10/15
JO  - The Astrophysical Journal
DO  - 10.3847/1538-4357/aea4a2
UR  - https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/1538-4357/aea4a2
AB  - The physical properties of circumplanetary disks offer insights into the formation of giant planets and their satellites. The circumbinary planetary-mass companion SR 12 c (1200 au from SR 12 AB) hosts an isolated dust disk directly detected with ALMA. We present JWST/MIRI imaging of SR 12 c from 5.6 to 21 μ m and analyze its spectral energy distribution from infrared to submillimeter wavelengths. Phenomenologically, the dust disk can be described by a two-component blackbody with large contrasts in characteristic temperatures and radii. Physically motivated models with varied geometries and heating mechanisms suggest a predominantly flat, irradiation-heated disk with a smaller contribution from viscous dissipation. The disk is inferred to be compact, with an inner radius of ∼3 R Jup . The outer radius is only loosely constrained, with a characteristic value of ∼3 au. The lack of strong 10 μ m excess emission suggests significant grain growth and dust settling. We also find that SR 12 c is broadly consistent with the empirical star–disk scaling relations, providing context for its possible formation pathway. These results demonstrate the power of combining mid-infrared and submillimeter observations with disk modeling to better understand the physical properties of circumplanetary disks.
SN  - 0004-637X
SN  - 1538-4357
ER  -