Disk evolution -- Poster Presentation

The discovery of extreme disk-jet systems in the Rosette Nebula

Jinzeng Li, National Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences

Travis A. Rector (U. of Anchorage, Alaska)


We've discovered a set of primarily two extreme jet systems, namely Rosette HH1 & HH2, in the Rosette Nebula (ApJ Letters 600, 67; ChJAA Letters, 3, 495). Contrary to all other known Herbig-Haro jets associated with star forming regions, the Rosette jets are found to have a high excitation nature due to disruptive interaction with the violent environment they reside in. These disk-jet systems are directly exposed to the fierce UV radiation fields of dozens of massive OB stars at the center of NGC 2244, which is the source of ionization that created the spectacular HII region, the Rosette Nebula. High-resolution spectroscopic observations of the Rosette HH1 source shows no evidence of veiling in its continuum though it contrarily displays distinct signiture of enhanced accretion. This leads to conclusions of fast disk dissipation and a different jet formation mechanism under the extreme environment of Rosette. We mention, for the first time, that this offers a potential evolution solution for the formation of brown dwarfs and free-floating giant planets in HII regions and cluster forming environments.