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R. C. Walker (NRAO), P.E. Hardee (Univ. of Alabama)
The jet in the relatively nearby active galaxy 3C120 (z=0.03) has proven to be a rich source of information about the nature of jets. It is seen at radio, optical, and Xray wavelengths. In the radio, the structure has been studied on scales from a fraction of a parsec to hundreds of kiloparsecs. At high resolution, observations of superluminal features, stationary features, helical patterns and magnitic effects have provided constraints for theoretical models and numerical calculations of jet structure and dynamics. Such modeling not only helps constrain the nature of the jet, but also provides clues to the nature of the external medium. In an effort to extend our knowledge of the jet structure at low radio frequencies with resolution similar to that of HST, we have made a long integration at 327 MHz with the VLBA. An interesting knot at 4 arcseconds, also seen in the optical and Xray, is imaged, as are other details of the inner few arcseconds of the jet. The 4 arcsecond knot is at a location where the jet crosses, at least in projection, an optical structure that looks somewhat like a spiral arm. The nature of this knot and other features in the jet will be discussed.
The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities Inc.
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 37 #4
© 2005. The American Astronomical Soceity.