A case study of gas impacted by black-hole jets with the JWST: outflows, bow shocks, and high excitation of the gas in the galaxy IC5063

TL;DR

This study uses JWST MIRI data to analyze how supermassive black hole jets interact with the gas in galaxy IC5063, revealing multiple outflows, bow shocks, and high excitation regions, indicating complex jet-ISM interactions.

Contribution

First detailed infrared analysis of jet-ISM interactions in IC5063, revealing numerous outflows and bow shocks, and highlighting the role of shocks and cosmic rays in gas excitation.

Findings

Over ten outflow regions identified, nearly doubling known regions.

Presence of bow shocks and outflows beyond radio lobes, indicating past jet activity.

Higher molecular gas excitation in radio-emission regions, >100 K increase.

Abstract

We present James Webb Space Telescope MIRI data of the inner 3x2kpc^2 of the galaxy IC5063, in which the jets of a supermassive black hole interact with the gaseous disk they are crossing. Jet-driven outflows were known to be initiated along or near the jet path and to modify the stability of molecular clouds, possibly altering their star formation properties. The MIRI data, of unprecedented resolution and sensitivity in the infrared, now reveal that there are more than ten discrete regions with outflows, nearly doubling the number of such known regions. Outflows exist near the radio lobes, at the nucleus, in a biconical structure perpendicular to the jet, and in a bubble moving against the disk. In some of them, velocities above escape velocity are observed. Stratification is also observed, with higher ionization or excitation gas attaining higher velocities. More outflows and bow shocks, found further away from the nucleus than the radio lobes, in regions without significant radio emission, reveal the existence of past or weak radio jets that interacted with the interstellar medium. The coincidence of the bow shocks with the optical extended emission line region (EELR) suggests that the jets also contributed to the gas ionization. Maps of the H2 gas excitation temperature, T_ex, indicate that the molecular gas is most excited in regions with radio emission. There, T_ex is >100 K higher than in the EELR interior. We argue that a combination of jet-related shocks and cosmic rays is likely responsible for this excess molecular gas excitation.