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Session 73 - Spiral Galaxies.
Oral session, Thursday, June 11
Friars,
We present preliminary results from the BIMA Survey of CO J = 1-0 emission from 44 nearby spiral galaxies. The BIMA Survey, undertaken to study the role of molecular gas in the evolution of spiral galaxies, is the first systematic imaging survey of the CO emission from the centers and disks of nearby spiral galaxies on 6-9" size scales. The survey addresses the structure of molecular gas in galactic disks and its relation to star formation, (2) the role of molecular gas in bar dynamics and its contribution to nuclear activity, and (3) the distribution and role of molecular gas in the central few hundred parsecs of active and quiescent galaxies. Our sample includes all (except M33) 44 galaxies of Hubble types Sa-Sd, with declinations \delta > -20 degrees, visual magnitudes B < 11.0, velocities v_hel < 2000 km s^-1, and inclinations i < 70 degrees. Beyond the specific scientific questions we will address, this survey will provide a unique database for astronomers who study galaxies at all wavelengths.
