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J. Wang (CfA), SAO and ASIAA SMA Team
This is the first results of both the CO 3-2 and CO 2-1 on merging galaxies at such high resolution of about 2".We observed the CO J=3-2 and J=2-1 lines toward the merging galaxy pair NGC6090 with the SMA. The maps show that the emission peaks of both CO lines are located at the overlap region of the two galaxies, where there is almost no near-IR emission. The CO 3-2/2-1 ratio shows that the gas associated with the face-on galaxy to the northwest is cold, while both the overlap region and the edge-on galaxy to the south are warmer. Channel maps of the CO J=2-1 line show similar structures as the CO J=1-0 line (Bryant and Scoville 1999 AJ 117, 2632). But the CO J=3-2 emission is more compact than the lower transitions, and comes mostly from the overlap region. These are the first results of both the CO J=3-2 and 2-1 lines from merging galaxies with an angular resolution as fine as 2". The SMA is a joint project of the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory and the Academia Sinica Institute of Astronomy and Astrophysics.
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Bulletin of the American Astronomical Society, 35#5
© 2003. The American Astronomical Soceity.