Establish the origin of the northern methanol knot

Determine whether the northern CH3OH knot in BHR71-IRS1 and the HCN N2 knot share a common physical origin.

Background

The northern CH3OH knot is spatially close to the HCN N2 knot reported in earlier observations, but the two features have different inferred emission sizes and their velocities may be affected differently by self-absorption. The paper identifies two possible interpretations for such knots—outflow material or infalling gas behind the cavity walls—but does not resolve whether the methanol and HCN features are the same structure.

Resolving this association is important for determining whether the knots arise from outflow activity or from infalling material impacting the envelope.

References

Therefore, we cannot determine whether the N2 knot and the northern CH$_3$OH knot share a common origin.

— Complex Organic Molecules in Protostars with ALMA Spectral Surveys (COMPASS) V. Tracing cavity walls and shocked knots with nonthermally desorbed CH$_3$OH in BHR71-IRS1  (2610.09500 - Yun et al., 7 Oct 2026) in Section 5.2, “Northern and southern knots”