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R. Jayawardhana, L.W. Hartmann, G.G. Fazio (Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics), R.S. Fisher, C.M. Telesco (University of Florida)
We present high-resolution mid-infrared observations of the nearby late-type young binary system Hen 3-600. The binary, at a distance of about 50 pc, may be a member of the TW Hydrae Association, the nearest known group of young stars, with an age of 5-10 million years. Our images make it possible for the first time to determine which star in the pair, separated by 1.4", harbors circumstellar dust. In the near-infrared, Hen 3-600A (M3) and Hen 3-600B (M3.5) have a flux ratio consistent with the emission being mainly due to the stellar photospheres. At longer wavelengths --4.8, 10.8 and 18.2 microns--the primary becomes increasingly dominant over the secondary, suggesting that most of the circumstellar dust in the system resides around Hen 3-600A. The distribution of dust in the system may provide clues to binary formation mechanisms as well as to the evolution of protoplanetary disks in close binaries.
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