High-Energy-Density Laboratory Astrophysics Studies of Jets and Bow Shocks

We present the first results from high-energy-density laboratory astrophysics experiments that explore the interaction of supersonic jets/outflows with an ambient medium. Our experiments were conducted on the Omega laser facility, a large Inertial Confinement Fusion facility. In our experiments, a laser pulse drives a supersonic jet into foam. High-resolution X-ray radiography reveals the resulting highly structured bow shock. These are the first laboratory astrophysics experiments to capture the behavior of both the jet and the bow shock. We discuss the astrophysical relevance of the flow processes that we observe in the experiments and in the accompanying numerical models. Scaling arguments suggest that our experiments are most directly relevant to active galactic nucleus jets and planetary nebula outflows, while future work may allow our experiments to extend into regimes relevant to radiative outflows from young stellar objects.