Numerical Simulations of a Protostellar Outflow Colliding with a Dense Molecular Cloud

TL;DR

This study uses 3D hydrodynamic simulations to explore how protostellar outflows interact with dense molecular clouds, explaining observed deflections and variability in the IRAS 4A region.

Contribution

The paper provides a detailed numerical model showing how outflow deflections depend on impact parameters and density contrasts, aligning simulations with observations.

Findings

Deflection angle depends mainly on impact parameter and density contrast.

Simulations reproduce observed column-density and velocity structures.

Densities of the cloud and ambient medium are estimated to be ~10^5 and 10^2 cm^-3.

Abstract

High-resolution SiO observations of the NGC 1333 IRAS 4A star-forming region showed a highly collimated outflow with a substantial deflection. The deflection was suggested to be caused by the interactions of the outflow and a dense cloud core. To investigate the deflection process of protostellar outflows, we have carried out three-dimensional hydrodynamic simulations of the collision of an outflow with a dense cloud. Assuming a power-law type density distribution of the obstructing cloud, the numerical experiments show that the deflection angle is mainly determined by the impact parameter and the density contrast between the outflow and the cloud. The deflection angle is, however, relatively insensitive to the velocity of the outflow. Using a numerical model with physical conditions that are particularly suitable for the IRAS 4A system, we produce a column-density image and a position-velocity diagram along the outflow, and they are consistent with the observations. Based on our numerical simulations, if we assume that the initial density and the velocity of the outflow are $\sim 10 \cm3$ and $\sim 100 \kms$, the densities of the dense core and ambient medium in the IRAS 4A system are most likely to be $\sim 10^5 \cm3$ and $\sim 10^2 \cm3$, respectively. We therefore demonstrate through numerical simulations that the directional variability of the IRAS 4A outflow can be explained reasonably well using the collision model.