THE STRUCTURE AND ENVIRONMENT OF THE WIDE-ANGLE TAILED RADIO GALAXY 1919+479

New 20-cm VLA observations of the radio galaxy 1919 + 479 appear to pose some major problems for a radio-trail model of this wide-angle tailed source. The extreme length of the tails (> 1 Mpc), the curvature of a one-sided radio jet and the nature of the galaxy (cD in a rich cluster) present strong objections to the view that this class of source is formed by motion through the intracluster medium. The length (> 350 kpc) and curvature of the jet in this patently asymmetrical source suggest that the jet exists in an environ ment conducive to stability. Such an environment may be present if 'passive' mechanisms such as buoyancy or large-scale mass motions are invoked to bend the jet-tail structure. © Royal Astronomical Society.