Ammonia Observations of Outflow Regions

Abstract

Using the 37 m telescope of the Haystack Observatory, we observed the (J, K) = (1, 1) ammonia transition toward the suspected exciting sources of 12 regions with molecular or optical outflows: L1448, L1455, L1524 (Haro 6-10), RNO 43, HH 34, HH 38, 43, Haro 4-255 FIR, NGC 2264 (HH 14-4, 6), L43, R CrA, HH 32a (AS 353A), and VI331 Cyg. We detected and mapped ammonia emission in nine of these regions. In five of the mapped regions, the spatial coincidence of the high-density gas with the objects previously proposed as exciting sources gives support to those identifications. For LI524 (Haro 6-10) and HH 38, 43, we propose a new location for their outflow exciting sources. We detected a radio continuum source and an unusually strong H20 maser coinciding with the maximum of the ammonia emission in L1448. This region appears to be the site of very recent star formation