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A Highly-collimated Water Maser Bipolar Outflow in the Cepheus A HW3d Massive Protostellar Object

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  24 July 2012

James O. Chibueze
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Kagoshima University, 1-21-35 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan email: [email protected] Department of Physics and Astronomy, Faculty of Physical Sciences, University of Nigeria, Carver Building, 1 University Road, Nsukka, Nigeria
Hiroshi Imai
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Kagoshima University, 1-21-35 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan email: [email protected]
Daniel Tafoya
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Kagoshima University, 1-21-35 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan email: [email protected]
Toshihiro Omodaka
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Kagoshima University, 1-21-35 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan email: [email protected]
Osamu Kameya
Affiliation:
Mizusawa VLBI Observatory, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, 2-21-1 Osawa, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-8588, Japan
Tomoya Hirota
Affiliation:
Mizusawa VLBI Observatory, National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, 2-21-1 Osawa, Mitaka, Tokyo 181-8588, Japan
Sze-Ning Chong
Affiliation:
Department of Physics and Astronomy, Graduate School of Science and Engineering, Kagoshima University, 1-21-35 Korimoto, Kagoshima 890-0065, Japan email: [email protected]
José M. Torrelles
Affiliation:
Instituto de Ciencias del Espacio (CSIC)-UB/IEEC, Facultat de Física, Universitat de Barcelona, Martí i Franquès 1, E-08028 Barcelona, Spain
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Abstract

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We report the results of multi-epoch very long baseline interferometry (VLBI) water (H2O) maser observations carried out with the VLBI Exploration of Radio Astrometry (VERA) toward the HW3d object within the Cepheus A star-forming region. We measured proper motions of 30 water maser features, tracing a compact bipolar outflow. This outflow is highly collimated, extending through ~400 mas (290 AU), and having a typical proper motion velocity of ~6 mas yr−1 (~21 km s−1). The dynamical timescale of the outflow was estimated to be ~100 years, showing that the outflow is tracing a very early star-formation phase. Our results provide strong support that the HW3d object harbors an internal massive protostar, as previous observations suggested. In addition, we have analyzed Very Large Array (VLA) archive 1.3 cm continuum data of the 1995 and 2006 epochs obtained towards Cepheus A. These results indicate possible different protostars around HW3d and/or strong variability in its radio continuum emission.

Type
Contributed Papers
Copyright
Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2012

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