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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 25 May 2016
We present preliminary results of an investigation into the radiative impact of FU Orionis outbursts on protostellar envelopes. In the thermal accretion disk instability model, the inner portion of the disk is inflated in such a way as to funnel most of the outburst luminosity along the poles of the system. A multidimensional radiative transfer code is employed to derive the thermal equilibrium structure of the surrounding protostellar envelope and the backheated accretion disk during outburst. The radiation emitted during outburst is modeled as a combination of a self-luminous accretion disk and a central point source. We compare the relative heating of circumstellar material due to (1) an isotropic point source and (2) an anisotropic point source in which the emitted radiation is confined to a 30° cone about the polar axis. The isotropic point source creates a spherical dust cavity, while the anisotropic source naturally results in a cavity which is hourglass-shaped. Repeated outbursts may ultimately be responsible for the large-scale polar cavities commonly inferred to exist around young stellar objects. We also show that due to the anisotropy of the radiation expected during outburst, disk annuli within a few au will be shielded from the radiation of the outburst.