Tails of the Unexpected: The Interaction of an Isothermal Shell with a Cloud

Abstract

A new mechanism for the formation of cometary tails behind dense clouds or globules is discussed. Numerical hydrodynamical models show that when a dense shell of swept-up matter overruns a cloud, material in the shell is focussed behind the cloud to form a tail. This mode of tail formation is completely distinct from other methods, which involve either the removal of material from the cloud, or shadowing from a strong, nearby source of ionization. This mechanism is relevant to the cometary tails seen in planetary nebulae and to the interaction of superbubble shells with dense clouds.

6 pages, 6 figures, accepted for publication in MNRAS letters

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• Feedback from Winds and Supernovae in Massive Stellar Clusters - II. X-Ray Emission
• The Supershell-Molecular Cloud Connection: Large-Scale Stellar Feedback and the Formation of the Molecular ISM
• Self-Sealing Shells: Blowouts and Blisters on the Surfaces of Leaky Wind-Blown-Bubbles and Supernova Remnants
• Hydrodynamic simulations of the interaction of supernova shock waves with a clumpy environment: the case of the RX J0852.0-4622 (Vela Jr) supernova remnant
• A comparison of shock-cloud and wind-cloud interactions: effect of increased cloud density contrast on cloud evolution
• A family of cometary globules at the periphery of Cyg OB1: the star HBHA 3703-01 and the reflection nebula GM 2-39
• Shocking interactions of supernova remnants with atomic and molecular clouds -- the interplay between shocks, thermal instability and gravity in the large cloud regime