The observable effects of tidally induced warps in protostellar discs

We consider the response of a protostellar disc to a tidally induced warp and the resultant changes in the spectral energy distribution (SED). We argue that for typical protostellar disc parameters the warp is communicated through the disc in a wave-like fashion. We find that the main effects of the warp tend to be at large radii (R≳ 30 au) and, for sufficiently small viscosity, can be quite long-lived. This can result in non-uniform illumination of the disc at these radii and can induce significant changes to the SED at wavelengths λ≳ 100 μm.