Compact Radio Sources in Orion: New Detections, Time Variability, and Objects in OMC-1S

Abstract

We present the analysis of four 3.6 cm radio continuum archival observations of Orion obtained using the Very Large Array in its A-configuration, with $0\rlap.{''}3$ angular resolution. The observations were made during the period 1994-1997. In a region of $4' \times 4'$, we detect a total of 77 compact radio sources. Of the total of detected sources, 54 are detected in one or more of the individual observations and 36 of these show time variability (by more than 30%) between the observed epochs. A deep image made from averaging all data shows an additional 23 faint sources, in the range of 0.1 to 0.3 mJy. Of the total of 77 sources, 39 are new centimeter detections. However, only 9 of the 77 sources do not have a previously reported counterpart at near-infrared, optical, or X-ray wavelengths. In particular, we detect three faint sources in the OMC-1S region that may be related to the sources that power the multiple outflows that emanate from this part of the Orion nebula. %We discuss the nature of these sources and its relation with the %near-infrared, optical, and X-ray objects in the region.