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Molecular Gas and Star Formation in the NGC 3077 Tidal Arm

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 May 2016

Fabian Walter ,
Crystal Martin ,
Jürgen Ott  and
Andreas Heithausen
Fabian Walter
Affiliation:
NRAO, P.O. Box O, Socorro, NM 87801, USA
Crystal Martin
Affiliation:
UC Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara, CA 93106-9530, USA
Jürgen Ott
Affiliation:
CSIRO, ATNF, P.O. Box 76, Epping NSW 1710, Australia
Andreas Heithausen
Affiliation:
University of Bonn, Auf dem Hügel 71, 53121 Bonn, Germany

Abstract

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We report the discovery of extended star formation in the prominent tidal arms near NGC 3077 (member of the M 81 triplet). 36 faint compact star forming regions were identified, covering an area of 4 × 6 kpc2. HII regions are only found near the southern rim of the tidal HI arm where the HI column density reaches values above 1 × 1021 cm−2. This threshold is very similar to what is found in ‘normal’ galactic environments. We derive a total star formation rate of 2.6 × 10−3M⊙ yr−1 in the tidal feature. We also present the first high-resolution observations of molecular gas in this region. The molecular gas emission can be separated into at least 5 distinct complexes most of which do not coincide with sites of star formation. The reservoir of neutral and molecular gas in the tidal arm is huge (~5 × 108M⊙); star formation may continue at the given rate for a Hubble time. We conclude that wide-spread low-level star formation may be a common phenomenon in tidal HI tails, however it will be difficult to detect in interacting systems that are further away.

Type
Part 4. Recycling
Information
Symposium - International Astronomical Union , Volume 217: Recycling Intergalactic and Interslettar Matter , 2004 , pp. 498 - 503
Copyright
Copyright © Astronomical Society of the Pacific 2004 

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