Fine-scale structure in the -185 kilometers per second absorption by HCO(+) in the Galactic center

We present a high-resolution study of the HCO(+) (J = 1-0) absorption by the 'high-velocity gas' at velocities between -170 and -200 km/s in Sgr A West. The absorption against the continuum radiation from the ionized gas features in Sgr A West (in particular the 'bar') is stronger than it is against Sgr A which is separated from the ionized gas by a few arcseconds. The positions of peak HCO(+) opacity coincide with the positions of Ne II emission at these velocities. These observations suggest that, even though emission is detected from gas at these high velocities over several arcminutes, some of the absorbing molecular gas may be mixed in with the ionized gas close to Sgr A. Simple calculations show that sufficient shielding can exist in the ionized features to allow molecules to survive very close to the ionizing source.