Subparsec Jet Morphologies of M87 at 43 GHz: Effects of Asymmetric Plasmoids within the Jet

TL;DR

This study models the effects of asymmetric plasmoid injections on the subparsec jet morphology of M87 at 43 GHz, explaining observed velocity and shape variations through a force-free jet framework.

Contribution

It introduces a model considering asymmetric plasmoid injections within a force-free jet to explain M87's jet dynamics and morphology at subparsec scales.

Findings

Asymmetric plasmoid injections can account for velocity variations.

Model reproduces limb-brightening and morphological changes.

Supports plasma injection asymmetry as key to jet dynamics.

Abstract

Radio observations of the M87 jet reveal limb-brightened features that exhibit temporal variations, with the brighter limb side not remaining consistently fixed at the subparsec scales. Utilizing a force-free jet model that considers exclusively the relativistic plasma dynamics along large-scale magnetic fields attached onto the central black hole, we examine the effects of asymmetric plasmoid injections within the subparsec jet. At subparsec scales, the jet velocity is predominantly influenced by poloidal velocity, leading to distinctive characteristics in both the morphology and trajectories of the plasmoids injected within the jet. We explore the potential modifications to the limb-brightened subparsec jet images resulting from the injection of asymmetric, shearing plasma, which is traditionally considered solely under conditions of stationary and symmetric mass loading. By comparing the model jet properties with the 43 GHz observations of the M87 jet, it is suggested that the asymmetric injection of plasmoids within the jet offers a satisfactory explanation for the observed velocity variations and morphological dynamics of the M87 jet.