Archived
This content is available here for research, reference, and/or recordkeeping.
Abstract
The structures and dynamics of the interstellar medium are governed by a combination of self-gravity, external gravity, and various sources of ordered and random motions on different spatial scales. This paper uses Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array CO (3–2) observations at (Formula presented) 0.″1≈5 pc resolution to examine the scale dependence of molecular gas structure and dynamics in the central molecular zone (CMZ) of a nearby galaxy, NGC 3351. We use the dendrogram technique to characterize hierarchical molecular gas structures spanning two decades in spatial scales and measure their size, gas mass, and velocity dispersion. Their size–line width relation shows a power-law slope of 0.58, comparable to measurements for CMZs in other galaxies and suggestive of significant contribution from ordered motion on large scales. We further decompose the observed velocity dispersion in each gas structure into ordered versus random motions. The former appears stronger in gas structures at ≳30 pc, while the latter becomes more dominant at ≲30 pc. Modulo uncertainties with the CO-to-H2 conversion factor, the estimated gravitational free-fall time is comparable to the crossing time of ordered motions for structures on all spatial scales, and both become longer than the crossing time of random motions at small, ≲10 pc scales. Our results highlight the varying sources and drivers of gas motions on different spatial scales in the CMZ of a Milky Way–like galaxy.
Document Type
Article
Publication Date
6-1-2026
Digital Object Identifier (DOI)
10.3847/1538-4357/ae6448
Archival?
Archival
Repository Citation
Wang, Liam M.; Sun, Jiayi; Teng, Yu Hsuan; Koch, Eric W.; Moon, Sanghyuk; Oakes, Elias; and Rosolowsky, Erik, "Multiscale Gas Structure and Dynamics in an Extragalactic Central Molecular Zone" (2026). Physics and Astronomy Faculty Publications. 771.
https://uknowledge.uky.edu/physastron_facpub/771
Notes/Citation Information
Publisher Copyright: © 2026. The Author(s). Published by the American Astronomical Society. Original content from this work may be used under the terms of the https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/. Any further distribution of this work must maintain attribution to the author(s) and the title of the work, journal citation and DOI.