MINDS. The Detection of ¹³CO₂ with JWST-MIRI Indicates Abundant CO₂ in a Protoplanetary Disk

We present JWST-MIRI Medium Resolution Spectrometer (MRS) spectra of the protoplanetary disk around the low-mass T Tauri star GW Lup from the MIRI mid-INfrared Disk Survey Guaranteed Time Observations program. Emission from ¹²CO₂¹³CO₂, H₂O, HCN, C₂H₂, and OH is identified with ¹³CO₂ being detected for the first time in a protoplanetary disk. We characterize the chemical and physical conditions in the inner few astronomical units of the GW Lup disk using these molecules as probes. The spectral resolution of JWST-MIRI MRS paired with high signal-to-noise data is essential to identify these species and determine their column densities and temperatures. The Q branches of these molecules, including those of hot bands, are particularly sensitive to temperature and column density. We find that the ¹²CO₂ emission in the GW Lup disk is coming from optically thick emission at a temperature of ∼400 K. ¹³CO₂ is optically thinner and based on a lower temperature of ∼325 K, and thus may be tracing deeper into the disk and/or a larger emitting radius than ¹²CO₂. The derived N CO 2 / N H 2 O ratio is orders of magnitude higher than previously derived for GW Lup and other targets based on Spitzer-InfraRed-Spectrograph data. This high column density ratio may be due to an inner cavity with a radius in between the H₂O and CO₂ snowlines and/or an overall lower disk temperature. This paper demonstrates the unique ability of JWST to probe inner disk structures and chemistry through weak, previously unseen molecular features.