Jets, plumes and hotspots in the wide-angle tail source 3C 130

Abstract

I present 1.5- and 8.4-GHz observations with all configurations of the NRAO VLA of the wide-angle tail source 3C130. The source has a pair of relatively symmetrical, well- collimated inner jets, one of which terminates in a compact hot spot. Archival ROSAT PSPC data confirm that 3C130’s environment is a luminous cluster with little sign of sub-structure in the X-ray-emitting plasma. I compare the source to other wide-angle tail objects and discuss the properties of the class as a whole. None of the currently popular models is entirely satisfactory in accounting for the disruption of the jets in 3C130.