The molecular Milky Way
T. M. Dame;
ST, 1988, 76, 22
ABSTRACT:The study of the location and composition of molecular clouds is discussed.
The use of carbon monoxide as a tracer as star formation
and interstellar gas and the instruments used to find and map CO emission
are examined.
At 2.6 mm, the wavelength at which CO is most easily
observed, radio telescopes have a beam size of about 1 arc minute, making it
difficult to map large areas.
The mini telescope which has a beam size of about 8
arc minutes at 2.6 mm is being used to measure the average emission from a
one-half degree patch of sky through a 4-by-4 grid to map larger areas of the
Galaxy.
One-fifth of the sky has been mapped with 31,000 individual observations
covering more than 7,700 square degrees.
In addition, the way in which maps of
latitude, intensity, and velocity are converted into meaningful maps is
examined.
KEYWORDS: carbon monoxide, emission spectra, milky way galaxy, molecular clouds, radio astronomy, astronomical maps, radial velocity, radio telescopes, southern hemisphere
PERSOKEY:co, milky way, h2, ,
CODE: dame88