DISCOVERY OF SUB- TO SUPERLUMINAL MOTIONS IN THE M87 JET: AN IMPLICATION OF ACCELERATION FROM SUB-RELATIVISTIC TO RELATIVISTIC SPEEDS

The velocity field of the M87 jet from milli-arcsecond (mas) to arcsecond scales is extensively investigated together with new radio images taken from European VLBI Network (EVN) observations. We detected proper motions of components located at between 160 mas from the core and the HST-1 complex for...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Astrophysical journal. Letters 2014-01, Vol.781 (1), p.1-5
Main Authors: Asada, Keiichi, Nakamura, Masanori, Doi, Akihiro, Nagai, Hiroshi, Inoue, Makoto
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
ACCELERATION
Active galactic nuclei
ASTROPHYSICS, COSMOLOGY AND ASTRONOMY
BLACK HOLES
Black holes (astronomy)
Collimation
Deceleration
GALAXIES
GALAXY NUCLEI
JETS
Magnetohydrodynamic flow
Networks
PROPER MOTION
RELATIVISTIC RANGE
SCHWARZSCHILD RADIUS
Upstream
VELOCITY
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Summary:The velocity field of the M87 jet from milli-arcsecond (mas) to arcsecond scales is extensively investigated together with new radio images taken from European VLBI Network (EVN) observations. We detected proper motions of components located at between 160 mas from the core and the HST-1 complex for the first time. Newly derived velocity fields exhibit a systematic increase from sub- to superluminal speeds in the upstream of HST-1. If we assume that the observed velocities reflect the bulk flow, here we suggest that the M87 jet may be gradually accelerated through a distance of 10 super(6) times the Schwarzschild radius of the supermassive black hole. The acceleration zone is co-spatial with the jet parabolic region, which is interpreted as the collimation zone of the jet. The acceleration and collimation take place simultaneously, which we suggest is characteristic of magnetohydrodynamic flows. The distribution of the velocity field has a peak at HST-1, which is considered as the site of over-collimation, and shows a deceleration downstream of HST-1 where the jet is conical. Our interpretation of the velocity map in the M87 jet provides a hypothesis for active galactic nuclei which suggests that the acceleration and collimation zone of relativistic jets extends over the whole scale within the sphere of influence of the supermassive black hole.
ISSN:2041-8205
2041-8213
DOI:10.1088/2041-8205/781/1/L2