Molecular clouds in M82

A complete mapping of the CO gas J = 1 yields 0 emission at 50 arcsec resolution was made of the irregular galaxy M82. The CO and radio continuum scans covered the entire optical disk and the optical filaments out to 2.5 kpc from the center. A total of 79 positions were scrutinized for the kinematics and radial distributions of the molecular gas and the concentrations of C-130. A systemic velocity of 165-185 km/sec was calculated, along with a 50 km/sec radial infall starting 1.5 arcmin from the center. The H2/H1 ratio was 10:1. The data indicate that M82 is accreting matter from the local M81 group as fuel for ongoing star formation processes.