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J. Patience, B. Macintosh (LLNL), A. M. Ghez (UCLA)
With the Keck adaptive optics system we are constructing the highest angular resolution map of the dense Trapezium region in Orion. These Keck images can resolve binaries down to ~20 AU, covering the critical separation range associated with the peak of the binary distribution. As of October 2000, our survey with 293 overlapping KCam images encompassed an area of 1300 square arcseconds and covered 53 Orion targets. Additional planned observations should increase the Trapezium sample size. Initial results reveal a number of subarcsecond binaries and suggest a companion star fraction that is more similar to the field G-dwarfs and several open clusters rather than the high value measured in the nearest dark cloud star forming regions. These AO images also resolve several proplyds.
This research was performed under the auspices of the U.S. Department of Energy by Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory under Contract W-7405-ENG-48, and also supported in part by the Center for Adaptive Optics under the STC Program of the National Science Foundation.