1998A&A...332..714R

Most models of radiative jets have been computed for the special case of a top hat initial cross section. This paper discusses the dynamics of both leading and internal working surfaces in jets with more general initial cross sections, based on both an analytic, ``thin shell'' model, and on a full numerical simulation. We find that a non-top hat cross section for the jet ram pressure first leads to a strong curvature of the working surface shocks, and at longer timescales to the formation of a warm, dense ``nose cone''. These results have interesting implications for comparisons between radiative jet models and observations of Herbig-Haro objects.