Abstract
The central region of the synchrotron jet in 3C 66B imaged with ultrahigh spatial resolution by the Faint Object Camera on the HST is discussed. A close correspondence between the general characteristics of the smoothed optical image and the radio map is observed, implying that the young and old relativistic particles occupy similar regions to within about 130 pc. Focus is placed on the double-stranded filamentary nature of the jet, and it is speculated that this could reflect edge-brightening effects due to enhanced radiation from a skinlike structure surrounding the jet. It is noted that the similarity of optical and radio morphologies points to the fact that localized particle acceleration occurs along the jet; however, the filamentary structure and a low filling factor of radiation agree with a model in which the electrons are accelerated within the nucleus and are transported along the jet in a channel having low magnetic field.
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