High-resolution images of shocked molecular clumps in the supernova remnant IC 443

We present high angular resolution interferometric observations of HCO⁺ J = 1 → 0 line emission from two molecular clumps which are being shocked by the blast wave from the supernova which formed the remnant IC 443. Our observations show that a range of gas densities exist within these clumps; this fact may explain the mixture of shock velocities inferred from other observations. Previous studies have shown evidence that molecular material is being accelerated by the blast wave in a systematic fashion around one of the clumps that we study. We show that this phenomenon also occurs at the small spatial scales that we observe. In addition, we present evidence that suggests that the velocity field may correspond to ablation from or a bow shock around the denser cores present within the clumps.