The magnetic field of IRAS 16293-2422 as traced by shock-induced H2O masers

Abstract

H2O masers are important magnetic field tracers in very high density gas. We show one of the first magnetic field determinations at such high density in a low-mass protostar: IRAS 16293-2422. We used the Very Large Array (VLA) to carry out spectro-polarimetric observations of the 22 GHz Zeeman emission of H2O masers. A blend of at least three maser features can be inferred from our data. They are excited in zones of compressed gas produced by shocks between the outflows ejected by this source and the ambient gas. The post-shock particle density is in the range 1 - 3 × 109cmt-3, and the line-of-sight component of the magnetic field is estimated as ∼ 113 mG. The outflow dynamics is likely magnetically dominated. Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2012.