Issue |
A&A
Volume 627, July 2019
|
|
---|---|---|
Article Number | A79 | |
Number of page(s) | 15 | |
Section | Extragalactic astronomy | |
DOI | https://doi.org/10.1051/0004-6361/201935119 | |
Published online | 03 July 2019 |
Derivation of the physical parameters of the jet in S5 0836+710 from stability analysis
1
Max-Planck-Institut für Radioastronomie, Auf dem Hügel 69, 53121 Bonn, Germany
e-mail: lauvegar@mpifr-bonn.mpg.de
2
Departament d’Astronomia i Astrofísica, Universitat de València, C/ Dr. Moliner, 50, 46100 Burjassot, València, Spain
e-mail: manel.perucho@valencia.edu
3
Observatori Astronòmic, Universitat de València, C/ Catedràtic Beltrán 2, 46091 Paterna, València, Spain
4
Institut für Experimentalphysik, Universität Hamburg, Luruper Chaussee 149, 22761 Hamburg, Germany
Received:
23
January
2019
Accepted:
29
March
2019
Context. A number of extragalactic jets show periodic structures at different scales that can be associated with growing instabilities. The wavelengths of the developing instability modes and their ratios depend on the flow parameters, so the study of those structures can shed light on jet physics at the scales involved.
Aims. In this work, we use the fits to the jet ridgeline obtained from different observations of S5 B0836+710 and apply stability analysis of relativistic, sheared flows to derive an estimate of the physical parameters of the jet.
Methods. Based on the assumption that the observed structures are generated by growing Kelvin–Helmholtz (KH) instability modes, we ran numerical calculations of stability of a relativistic, sheared jet over a range of different jet parameters. We spanned several orders of magnitude in jet-to-ambient medium density ratio, and jet internal energy, and checked different values of the Lorentz factor and shear layer width. This represents an independent method to obtain estimates of the physical parameters of a jet.
Results. By comparing the fastest growing wavelengths of each relevant mode given by the calculations with the observed wavelengths reported in the literature, we have derived independent estimates of the jet Lorentz factor, specific internal energy, jet-to-ambient medium density ratio, and Mach number. We obtain a jet Lorentz factor γ ≃ 12, specific internal energy of ε ≃ 10−2 c2, jet-to-ambient medium density ratio of η ∼ 10−3, and an internal (classical) jet Mach number of Mj ∼ 12. We also find that the wavelength ratios are better recovered by a transversal structure with a width of ≃10% of the jet radius.
Conclusions. This method represents a powerful tool to derive the jet parameters in all jets showing helical patterns with different wavelengths.
Key words: galaxies: jets / magnetohydrodynamics (MHD) / quasars: individual: S5 0836+710 / radio continuum: galaxies / relativistic processes
© L. Vega-García et al. 2019
Open Access article, published by EDP Sciences, under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Open Access funding provided by Max Planck Society.
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