The mass distribution in the innermost regions of Spiral Galaxies

Abstract

We use high-spatial resolution ($\sim 100 pc$) rotation curves of 83 spiral galaxies to investigate the mass distribution of their innermost kpc. We show that, {\it in this region}, the luminous matter completely accounts for the gravitational potential and no dark component is required. The derived I-band disk mass-to-light ratios agree well with those obtained from population synthesis models and correlate with color in a similar way. We find strict upper limits of $\sim 10^7 M_\odot$ for the masses of compact bodies at the center of spirals, ruling out that these systems host the remnants of the quasar activity.