Further indications of jet rotation in new ultraviolet and optical Hubble Space Telescope STIS spectra

We present survey results that suggest rotation signatures at the base of T Tauri jets. Observations were conducted with the Hubble Space Telescope Imaging Spectrograph at optical and near-ultraviolet (NUV) wavelengths. Results are presented for the approaching jet from DG Tau, CW Tau, HH 30, and the bipolar jet from TH 28. Systematic asymmetries in Doppler shift were detected across the jet, within 100 AU from the star. At optical wavelengths, radial velocity differences were typically (10-25) ± 5 km s-1, while differences in the NUV range were consistently lower, at typically 10 ± 5 km s-1. Results are interpreted as possible rotation signatures. Importantly, there is agreement between the optical and NUV results for DG Tau. Under the assumption of steady magnetocentrifugal acceleration, the survey results lead to estimates for the distance of the jet footpoint from the star, and give values consistent with earlier studies. In the case of DG Tau, for example, we see that the higher velocity component appears to be launched from a distance of 0.2-0.5 AU from the star along the disk plane, while the lower velocity component appears to trace a wider part of the jet launched from as far as 1.9 AU. The results for the other targets are similar. Therefore, if indeed the detected Doppler gradients trace rotation within the jet, then under the assumption of steady MHD ejection, the derived footpoint radii support the existence of magnetized disk winds. However, since we do not resolved the innermost layers of the flow, we cannot exclude the possibility that there also exists an X-wind or stellar wind component. © 2007, The American Astronomical Society, All rights reserved.