CTB80 - A galactic radio source with directed jets

Abstract

Recent investigations of the galactic radio source CTB 80 reveal several jet-like structures which can be traced outward to over 30 pc from a point less than 0.1 pc within a central core. If the object is associated with a supernova of 1408, then the jets must move out at a velocity of 0.2 C and can only be about 572 years old. The morphology of the whole source, however, suggests a significant, proper east to west motion of the central object, and indicates a much older age. In this case, continuous ejection into the jets would have occurred for tens of thousands of years. A quantitative explanation is presented in which the supernova explosion ejects several massive path-cutting fragments. It thus appears that the extended jets in CTB 80 do emanate from a small core which is energized by a compact object, but the source of this continuous ejection process still remains unknown