Radio observations of the jet in Fornax A

The radiation near the center of Fornax A (NGC 1316) has been mapped at the VLA at 1.5, 4.9, and 15.0 GHz with arcsecond and subarcsecond resolution. The radio structure consists of a steep-spectrum core and dual-opposing jets which extend about 5 kpc before abruptly terminating. The inner 300 pc of the jets contain discrete knots, the outer parts of the jets are continuous. This type of inner-jet morphology is seen in several other radio sources such as 3C236 and 3C293. The jets show significant departures from linearity which appear to be produced by interactions with the galactic medium. The jets point in the general vicinity of the extended radio lobes with which there is no visible connection. The lack of hot spots in the lobes may be caused by short-terms variation in the direction of the energy flow to the lobes.