JWST/MIRI detection of suprathermal OH rotational emissions: probing the dissociation of the water by Lyman alpha photons near the protostar HOPS 370
arxiv(2024)
摘要
Using the MIRI/MRS spectrometer on JWST, we have detected pure rotational,
suprathermal OH emissions from the vicinity of the intermediate-mass protostar
HOPS 370 (OMC2/FIR3). These emissions are observed from shocked knots in a
jet/outflow, and originate in states of rotational quantum number as high as 46
that possess excitation energies as large as E_U/k = 4.65 × 10^4 K. The
relative strengths of the observed OH lines provide a powerful diagnostic of
the ultraviolet radiation field in a heavily-extinguished region (A_V ∼ 10
- 20) where direct UV observations are impossible. To high precision, the OH
line strengths are consistent with a picture in which the suprathermal OH
states are populated following the photodissociation of water in its B̃
- X band by ultraviolet radiation produced by fast (∼ 80 km s^-1)
shocks along the jet. The observed dominance of emission from symmetric
(A^') OH states over that from antisymmetric (A^'') states
provides a distinctive signature of this particular population mechanism.
Moreover, the variation of intensity with rotational quantum number suggests
specifically that Lyα radiation is responsible for the photodissociation
of water, an alternative model with photodissociation by a 10^4 K blackbody
being disfavored at a high level of significance. Using measurements of the
Brα flux to estimate the Lyα production rate, we find that ∼
4% of the Lyα photons are absorbed by water. Combined with direct
measurements of water emissions in the ν_2 = 1 -0 band, the OH observations
promise to provide key constraints on future models for the diffusion of
Lyα photons in the vicinity of a shock front.
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