HH 666: Different kinematics from H{\alpha} and [Fe II] emission provide a missing link between jets and outflows

TL;DR

This study reveals that H{eta} and [Fe II] emissions trace different kinematic structures in HH 666, linking the properties of jets and outflows and suggesting a sustained accretion burst over 1000 years.

Contribution

It provides new near-IR [Fe II] spectra and imaging that distinguish the kinematics of jet and outflow components in HH 666, bridging the understanding between jets and molecular outflows.

Findings

[Fe II] traces steady, fast jet velocities around ±200 km/s.

H{eta} reveals a Hubble-flow velocity structure near the source.

Evidence of a sustained accretion burst lasting ~1000 years.

Abstract

HH 666 is an externally irradiated protostellar outflow in the Carina Nebula for which we present new near-IR [Fe II] spectra obtained with the FIRE spectrograph at Magellan Observatory. Earlier H{\alpha} and near-IR [Fe II] imaging revealed that the two emission lines trace substantially different morphologies in the inner ~40" of the outflow. H{\alpha} traces a broad cocoon that surrounds the collimated [Fe II] jet that extends throughout the parent dust pillar. New spectra show that this discrepancy extends to their kinematics. Near-IR [Fe II] emission traces steady, fast velocities of +/- 200 km/s from the eastern and western limbs of the jet. We compare this to a previously published H{\alpha} spectrum that reveals a Hubble-flow velocity structure near the jet-driving source. New, second-epoch HST/ACS H{\alpha} images reveal the lateral spreading of the H{\alpha} outflow lobe away from the jet axis. H{\alpha} proper motions also indicate a sudden increase in the mass-loss rate ~1000 yr ago, while steady [Fe II] emission throughout the inner jet suggests that the burst is ongoing. An accretion burst sustained for ~1000 yr is an order of magnitude longer than expected for FU Orionis outbursts, but represents only a small fraction of the total age of the HH 666 outflow. Altogether, available data suggests that [Fe II] traces the highly collimated protostellar jet while H{\alpha} traces the entrained and irradiated outflow. HH 666 appears to be a missing link between bare jets seen in H II regions and entrained molecular outflows seen from embedded protostars in more quiescent regions.