[Previous] | [Session 48] | [Next]
S. D. Brittain, T. W. Rettig (University of Notre Dame)
Advances in infrared instrumentation have recently allowed for searches of cometary volatiles in preplanetary disks around minimally embedded or isolated young stellar objects (YSO's). We will present infrared spectra of several HAeBe and TTauri stars and discuss the presence and implications of a variety of organic volatiles detected. The data were obtained from preliminary observations using two high-resolution (lamda/dlambda ~ 20,000) infrared spectrometers (NIRSPEC at Keck II and CSHELL at IRTF). The results will be used to probe the gas composition in pre-planetary YSO disks in order to test conditions in comet forming regions. Measuring the column density and abundance of organic molecules found in the pre-planetary disks is key to testing models of photo-processing and for comparing to the abundance of volatile molecules in comets. The observations demonstrate the feasibility of this study as a new tool for quantifying physical conditions in planet-forming regions.