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 greater than or similar to 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 lambda greater than or similar to 100 mu m.