The Motion of Water Masers in the Pre-Planetary Nebula IRAS 16342-3814

Abstract

We present high angular resolution observations, using the Very Long Baseline Array of the NRAO⁴The National Radio Astronomy Observatory is a facility of the National Science Foundation operated under cooperative agreement by Associated Universities, Inc., of the high-velocity water masers toward the "water fountain" pre-planetary nebula, IRAS 16342-3814. The detailed structure of the water masers appears to be that of bow shocks on either side of a highly collimated jet. The proper motions of the water masers are approximately equal to the radial velocities; the three-dimensional velocities are approximately ± 180 km s^-1, which leads to a very short dynamical timescale of ~100 yrs. Although we do not find direct evidence for precession of the fast collimated jet, there may be indirect evidence for such precession.