Discovery of a molecular hydrogen jet near IC 348

Abstract

view Abstract Citations (162) References (36) Co-Reads Similar Papers Volume Content Graphics Metrics Export Citation NASA/ADS Discovery of a Molecular Hydrogen Jet near IC 348 McCaughrean, Mark J. ; Rayner, John T. ; Zinnecker, Hans Abstract We present near-infrared images of a newly discovered molecular hydrogen jet (HH 211) near the young stellar cluster IC 348 in the Perseus dark cloud complex. A wide-field true-color JHK' image locates HH 211 relative to the embedded source IC 348 IR, and a high-resolution image taken in the H2 upsilon = 1 - 0 S(1) line at 2.122 micrometers delineates the shock-excited gas. The jet is very young, with a dynamical age of less than 1000 yr. We suggest that the H2 emission arises in a turbulent sheath around the true jet, leading to an unusual symmetric limb-brightened appearance. This boundary layer is probably where ambient molecular material is being entrained to form a coincident bipolar CO outflow. We discuss possible models for the knots in HH 211, including internal working surfaces in an episodic outflow and crossing shocks in a recollimating jet. The exciting source of the jet and outflow was detected at lambda greater than or = 350 micrometers, and our observations imply that the exciting source is a young star deeply embedded in a dense NH3 core, perhaps an edge-on circumstellar disk. The HH 211 system of jet, molecular outflow, and embedded exciting source is the first discovered through near-infrared imaging. Publication: The Astrophysical Journal Pub Date: December 1994 DOI: 10.1086/187664 Bibcode: 1994ApJ...436L.189M Keywords: Hydrogen; Interstellar Gas; Jet Flow; Molecular Clouds; Molecular Flow; Star Clusters; Star Formation; Stellar Envelopes; Rosat Mission; Stellar Luminosity; Astrophysics; STARS: CIRCUMSTELLAR MATTER; INFRARED: ISM: CONTINUUM; INFRARED: ISM: LINES AND BANDS; ISM: JETS AND OUTFLOWS; ISM: MOLECULES; STARS: FORMATION full text sources ADS | data products SIMBAD (39)