MHD Supernova Jets: The Missing Link

We review recent progress in the theory of jet production, with particular emphasis on the possibility of 1) powerful jets being produced in the first few seconds after collapse of a supernova core and 2) those jets being responsible for the asymmetric explosion itself. The presently favored jet-production mechanism is an electrodynamic one, in which charged plasma is accelerated by electric fields that are generated by a rotating magnetic field anchored in the protopulsar. Recent observations of Galactic jet sources provide important clues to how all such sources may be related, both in the physical mechanism that drives the jet in the astrophysical mechanisms that create conditions conducive to jet formation. We propose a grand evolutionary scheme that attempts to unify these sources on this basis, with MHD supernovae providing the missing link. We also discuss several important issues that must be resolved before this (or another scheme) can be adopted. 1.