THE DISRUPTION OF THE DENSE DISK IN CRL-618

High angular resolution (0''.066) 23 GHz observations of the radio con tinuum and NH3 (3,3) line absorption toward the protoplanetary nebula CRL 618 are presented. The (3,3) line is detected in absorption toward the continuum source. The absorption line profile shows multiple blen ded velocity components, symmetrically placed with respect to the appr oaching part of the expanding asymptotic giant branch envelope, -40 km s(-1). Kinetic temperatures and column density images reveal for the first time the presence of a hot (greater than or similar to 200 K) an d dense (similar to 10(7) cm(-3)) ridge perpendicular to the bipolar m olecular outflow. Hot filamentary structures are also observed along t he outflow. All the observational features, the gradient in the radial velocities, the systematic behavior of the line widths observed in th e (3,3) line, as well as the derived kinetic temperature gradients, ar e explained by a model in which the NH3 lines arise from postshocked c lumps produced when the fast stellar wind from the central star imping es on the inner regions of the circumstellar disk responsible for coll imating the molecular outflow.