Optical jets and outflows in the HL Tauri region.

A detailed study of the HL Tau/HH30 region is presented, using mainly data consisting mainly of deep emission line and continuum CCD images and long-slit spectra obtained at medium and high spectral resolution. The jet parameters are derived and the cause of the large linewidths observed for some jets is investigated. It is shown that four out of five outflows in the HL Tau association point within a very narrow cone in space. The axis of this cone, however, is not even roughly aligned with the apparent direction of the magnetic field derived from polarization measurements of stars in the cloud periphery. The possible implications of this finding, and how it may explain the apparent jet bending, is explored. Steady shocks are ruled out as the source of the jet knots.