Nobeyama CO Atlas of Nearby Spiral Galaxies: Distribution of Molecular Gas in Barred and Non-barred Spiral Galaxies

TL;DR

This study uses CO mapping data from 40 nearby spiral galaxies to analyze how bars influence the distribution and central concentration of molecular gas, revealing that stronger bars more effectively funnel gas toward galaxy centers.

Contribution

It provides observational evidence that bars drive molecular gas inward and correlates bar strength with central gas concentration, supporting the idea of long-lived bars in spiral galaxies.

Findings

Bars increase central molecular gas concentration in spiral galaxies.

Stronger bars correlate with higher central gas accumulation.

Bars efficiently transport gas toward galaxy centers.

Abstract

The data from a CO(1 - 0) mapping survey of 40 nearby spiral galaxies performed with the Nobeyama 45-m telescope are presented. The criteria of the sample selection were (1) RC3 morphological type in the range Sa to Scd, (2) distance less than 25 Mpc, (3) inclination angle less than 79deg (RC3), (4) flux at 100 um higher than ~ 10 Jy, (5) spiral structure is not destroyed by interaction. The maps of CO cover most of the optical disk of the galaxies. We investigated the influence of bar on the distribution of molecular gas in spiral galaxies using these data. We confirmed that the degree of central concentration is higher in barred spirals than in non-barred spirals as shown by the previous works. Furthermore, we present an observational evidence that bars are efficient in driving molecular gas that lies within the bar length toward the center, while the role in bringing gas in from the outer parts of the disks is small. The transported gas accounts for about half of molecular gas within the central region in barred spiral galaxies. We found a correlation between the degree of central concentration and bar strength. Galaxies with stronger bars tend to have higher central concentration. The correlation implies that stronger bars accumulate molecular gas toward the center more efficiently. These results are consistent with long-lived bars.