Abstract
We report the discovery of the most symmetric embedded twin-exhaust jet known to date. It is located in a dense molecular star forming core in Orion, not far from the famous Horsehead Nebula, and is about 0.3 pc long on either side. Each side contains an inner series of spatially resolved knots (with inter-knot emission) and an outer series of giant bow-shocks, all seen in the v=1−0 S(1) line of shock excited H2 at 2.12 μm. Each pair of bow-shocks represents a distinct ejection event, lasting of the order of 300 yr. The regular spacing of the inner knots (of order 0.01 pc) which are almost perfectly matched on opposite sides of this bipolar jet, provide the strongest evidence yet for a physical model of a time-variable pulsed jet, with a period of (small) velocity variations as short as 30 yr. The high degree of symmetry also allows us to see that the two opposite halves of the jet are not completely co-linear and that there is a 1–2 degree asymmetry angle. The jet (named HH 212) originates from a very cold infrared and mm-continuum source, i.e., a very young embedded stellar object with a luminosity about 15 L ⊙, likely to be powered by accretion from an edge-on disk. Furthermore, the position of the exciting source as inferred from the symmetry of the jet coincides very well with the position of a compact radio H2O maser, this maser being the origin of our initial interest in this cold IRAS source.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Appl, S. & Camenzind, M. 1992, Astron. Astrophys., 256, 354
Bell, K.R. & Lin, D. N. C. 1994, Ap. J., 427, 987
Biro, S. & Raga, A.C. 1994, Ap. J., 434, 221
Bally, J. & Devine, D. 1994, Ap. J., 428, L65
Bally, J., Lada, E.A., & Lane, A. P. 1993, Ap. J., 418, 322
Bührke, Th., Mundt, R., Ray, T. 1988, A&A 200, 99
Camenzind, M. 1990, Rev. Mod. Astronomy, 3, 234
Camenzind, M. 1993, in Stellar Jets and Bipolar Outflows, eds. L. Errico & A.A. Vittone (Dordrecht: Kluwer), p. 289
Clarke, C. J., Armitage, P.J., Smith, K. W., & Pringle, J.E. 1995, Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc., 273, 639
Davis, C.J., Dent, W.R.F., Matthews, H.E., Aspin, C. & Lightfoot, J.F. 1994a, Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc., 266, 933
Davis, C.J., Eislöffel, J. & Ray, T.P. 1994b, Ap. J., 426, L93
Davis, C.J., Mundt, R., & Eislöffel, J. 1994c, Ap. J., 437, L55
Draine, B.T. & McKee, C.F. 1993, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys., 31, 373
Eislöffel, J., Davis, C.J., Ray, T.P. & Mundt, R. 1994, Ap. J., 422, L91
Falle, S.A.E.G. & Raga, A.C. 1995, Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc., 272, 785
Fukui, J. & Yokoo, T. 1986, Nature, 321, 841
Gredel, R. & Reipurth, B. 1993, Ap. J., 407, L29
Gredel, R. & Reipurth, B. 1994, Astron. Astrophys., 289, L19
Gredel, R., Reipurth, B. & Heathcote, S. 1992, Astron. Astrophys., 266, 439
Heathcote, S., Reipurt, B. 1992, A. J., 104, 2193
Kofman, L. & Raga, A.C. 1992, Ap. J., 390, 359
Masson, C. 1995, in Circumstellar Matter, eds. G. Watt & P.M. Williams, in press
Masson, C. & Chernin, L.M. 1993, Ap. J. 414, 230
McCaughrean, M.J., Rayner, J.T. & Zinnecker, H. 1994, Ap. J., 436, L189
Miley, G. 1980, Ann. Rev. Astron. Astrophys., 18, 165
Mundt, R. 1986, Canadian J. Physics, 64, 407
Norman, M.L. 1993, in Astrophysical Jets, eds. M. Livio, C. O’Dea & D. Burgarella (Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press), p. 211
Raga, A.C., Cabrit, S. 1993, Astron. Astrophys., 278, 367
Ray, T., Mundt, R. 1993, in Astrophysical Jets, eds. M. Livio, C. O’Dea & D. Burgarella (Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press), p. 145
Rees, M. 1978, Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc., 184, 61P
Reipurth, B. 1989, Nature, 340 42
Reipurth, B. 1994, A general catalogue of Herbig-Haro objects, electronically published via anonymous ftp from ftp.hq.eso.org, directory/pub/Catalogs/Herbig-Haro
Reipurth, B. & Heathcote, S. 1993, in Astrophysical Jets, eds. M. Livio, C. O’Dea & D. Burgarella (Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press), p. 35
Reipurth, B., Raga, A.C. & Heathcote, S. 1992, Ap. J., 392, 145
Shu, F., Najita, J., Ostriker, E., Wilkin, F., Ruden, S., & Lizano, S. 1994, Ap. J., 429, 781
Smith, M.D. & Brand, P.W.J.L. 1990, Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc., 245, 108
Smith, M.D. 1991, Mon. Not. R. astr. Soc., 252, 378
Sonnhalter, C., Preibisch, T., Yorke, H.M. 1995, Astron. Astrophys., 299, 545
Stahler, S.W. 1993, in Astrophysical Jets, eds. M. Livio C. O’Dea & D. Burgarella (Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press), p. 183
Stapelfeldt, K.R. & Scoville, N.Z. 1993, Ap. J., 408, 239
Stone, J.M. & Norman, M.L. 1993, Ap. J., 413, 210
Wouterloot, J.G.A. & Walmsley, C.M. 1986, Astron. Astrophys., 168, 237
Wouterloot, J.G.A., Walmsley, C.M., & Henkel, C. 1988, Astron. Astrophys., 203, 367
Wouterloot, J.G.A., Henkel, C., & Walmsley, C.M. 1989, Astron. Astrophys., 215, 131
Zinnecker, H., Mundt, R., Geballe, T.R. & Zealey, W.J. 1989, Ap. J., 342, 337
Zinnecker, H., Bastien, P., Arcoragi, J.P., & Yorke, H.W. 1992, Astron. Astrophys., 265, 726
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Editor information
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 1996 Springer-Verlag
About this paper
Cite this paper
Zinnecker, H., McCaughrean, M., Rayner, J. (1996). HH 212: The most beautiful protostellar jet known to date. In: Beckwith, S., Staude, J., Quetz, A., Natta, A. (eds) Disks and Outflows Around Young Stars. Lecture Notes in Physics, vol 465. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0102641
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BFb0102641
Published:
Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg
Print ISBN: 978-3-540-61389-3
Online ISBN: 978-3-540-68511-1
eBook Packages: Springer Book Archive