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Cold H I in turbulent eddies and galactic spiral shocks
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 01 August 2006
Abstract
H I 21cm-line self-absorption (HISA) reveals the shape and distribution of cold atomic clouds in the Galactic disk. Many of these clouds lack corresponding CO emission, despite being colder than purely atomic gas in equilibrium models. HISA requires background line emission at the same velocity, hence mechanisms that can produce such backgrounds. Weak, small-scale, and widespread absorption is likely to arise from turbulent eddies, while strong, large-scale absorption appears organized in cloud complexes along spiral arm shocks. In the latter, the gas may be evolving from an atomic to a molecular state prior to star formation, which would account for the incomplete HISA-CO agreement.
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- Type
- Contributed Papers
- Information
- Proceedings of the International Astronomical Union , Volume 2 , Symposium S237: Triggered Star Formation in a Turbulent ISM , August 2006 , pp. 363 - 367
- Copyright
- Copyright © International Astronomical Union 2007
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