NH3 in the Galactic Center is formed in Cool Conditions

It is an open question why the temperature of molecular gas in the Galactic center region is higher than that of dust. To address this problem, we made simultaneous observations in the NH_3 (J,K) = (1,1), (2,2), and (3,3) lines of the central molecular zone (CMZ) using the Kagoshima 6 m telescope. The ortho-to-para ratio of NH_3 molecules in the CMZ is 1.5--3.5 at most observed area. This ratio is higher than the statistical equilibrium value, and suggests that the formation temperature of NH_3 is 11--20 K. This temperature is similar to the dust temperature estimated from the submillimeter and infrared continuum. This result suggests that the NH_3 molecules in the CMZ were produced on dust grains with the currently observed temperature (11--20 K), and they were released into the gas phase by supernova shocks or collisions of dust particles. The discrepancy between warm molecular gas and cold dust can be explained by the transient heating of the interstellar media in the CMZ approximately 10^5 years ago when the NH_3 molecules were released from the dust.Comment: 19 pages, 12 figures, accepted for PAS

Propagation of Highly Efficient Star Formation in NGC 7000

We surveyed the (1,1), (2,2), and (3,3) lines of NH3 and the H2O maser toward the molecular cloud L935 in the extended HII region NGC 7000 with an angular resolution of 1.6' using the Kashima 34-m telescope. We found five clumps in the NH3 emission with a size of 0.2--1 pc and mass of 9--452 M_sun. The molecular gas in these clumps has a similar gas kinetic temperature of 11--15 K and a line width of 1--2 km/s. However, they have different star formation activities such as the concentration of T-Tauri type stars and the association of H2O maser sources. We found that these star formation activities are related to the geometry of the HII region. The clump associated with the T-Tauri type star cluster has a high star formation efficiency of 36--62%. This clump is located near the boundary of the HII region and molecular cloud. Therefore, we suggest that the star formation efficiency increases because of the triggered star formation.Comment: 19 pages, 15 figures, accepted for PASJ Vol.63 No.