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Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 April 2016
Images of molecular gas in spiral galaxies show two types of bar structure: large-scale bars, which are correlated with the presence of stellar bars, and generally follow the spiral structure, and nuclear “bars” of a few hundred parsecs in size, which show no direct correlation with the presence of a stellar bar. The dynamical origin of nuclear molecular bars is unclear, although they are consistent with radial inflow of gas into the nucleus, and subsequent evolution of the gas structure.