Conversion Problems: How (Not) to Determine Molecular Masses in Dwarf Galaxies
| dc.creator | Huettemeister, S. | |
| dc.date | 2001-07-16 | |
| dc.date.accessioned | 2026-07-07T01:59:19Z | |
| dc.date.available | 2026-07-07T01:59:19Z | |
| dc.description | The determination of molecular gas masses in star forming dwarf irregular galaxies is crucial to assess the star formation process in these objects. But the derivation of the molecular gas content of dwarf galaxies has been a long-standing problem. CO, as the only practical tracer of cold molecular gas, has been (and to some extent still is) notoriously diffucult to detect. Yet, star formation clearly takes place in many dwarf irregulars. This conference contribution contrasts a number of methods commonly used to derive the molecular gas contents of dwarf galaxies based on CO observations: Procedures based on the virial theorem and those relying on radiative transfer arguments. It is shown that both classes of methods have serious drawbacks. Still, examples show that there seem to be real differences in the `correct' conversion factor both between and within star forming dwarf irregular galaxies. | |
| dc.description | 4 pages, 2 figures, to appear in conference proceedings `Dwarf Galaxies and their Environment', Bad Honnef 2001 (eds. DeBoer, Dettmar, Klein) | |
| dc.identifier | https://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0107281 | |
| dc.identifier | http://arxiv.org/abs/astro-ph/0107281 | |
| dc.identifier.uri | http://salesiana.dossiersoluciones.com/handle/123456789/3067 | |
| dc.subject | Astrophysics | |
| dc.title | Conversion Problems: How (Not) to Determine Molecular Masses in Dwarf Galaxies | |
| dc.type | text |