The Perpendicularity of Dust Lanes and Radio Jets in Early-Type Galaxies: Implications for AGN Feedback

Abstract

The orientation of radio jets relative to their host galaxies offers an interesting avenue for probing the connection between active galactic nuclei (AGN) and their surroundings. Several studies have also investigated the orientation of nuclear dust features. We follow up on this previous work with newer Hubble Space Telescope imaging of early-type radio galaxies, and a largely automated process for measuring position angles. We classify the dust features as lanes, disks, or rings. Lanes are irregular structures that likely form from gas-rich minor mergers, while disks and rings are more well-defined and may form from settling lanes or internal mechanisms. We find that dust lanes do not have a preferred alignment relative to their host galaxies, but are preferentially perpendicular to the jets. In contrast, dust disks and rings tend to be closely aligned with the major axes of their host galaxies, but have varying orientations relative to the jets. Our results suggest that infalling dusty material from mergers can influence the angle of the radio jet. This would allow the jet orientation to change over time, and may help explain the role of AGN feedback in maintaining quiescence in massive galaxies.