Continuous Jets and Backflow Models for the Formation of W50/SS 433 in Magnetohydrodynamics Simulations

The formation mechanism of the W50/SS 433 complex has long been a mystery. We propose a new scenario in which the SS 433 jets themselves form the W50/SS 433 system. We carry out magnetohydrodynamics simulations of the propagation of two side jets using the public code CANS+. As found in previous jet studies, when the propagating jet is lighter than the surrounding medium, the shocked plasma flows back from the jet tip to the core. We find that the morphology of light jets is spheroidal at early times; afterward, the shell and wings are developed by the broadening spherical cocoon. The morphology depends strongly on the density ratio of the injected jet to the surrounding medium. Meanwhile, the ratio of the lengths of the two side jets depends only on the density profile of the surrounding medium. We also find that most of the jet kinetic energy is dissipated at the oblique shock formed by the interaction between the backflow and beam flow, rather than at the jet terminal shock. The position of the oblique shock is spatially consistent with the X-ray and TeV gamma-ray hotspots of W50.

Automated summary

The researchers proposed a new scenario in which the SS 433 jets themselves form the W50/SS 433 system. Through magnetohydrodynamics simulations, they found that when the propagating jet is lighter than the surrounding medium, the shocked plasma flows back from the jet tip to the core, resulting in a spherical morphology.