Observations of Ammonia in External Galaxies. II. Maffei 2

Abstract

The ammonia (J,K) = (1,1), (2,2), (3,3), and (4,4) transitions at 23.7 -- 24.1 GHz region were searched for in a nearby galaxy Maffei 2 to study relation between molecular abundances and physical conditions in galaxies. The (1,1), (2,2), and (3,3) emission lines were clearly detected. The rotational temperatures and ortho-to-para abundance ratios obtained are about 30 K and about 2.6, respectively. The abundance of NH3 relative to H2 in Maffei 2 was found to be the largest among galaxies where NH3 is already detected, and the abundance in Maffei 2 is more than an order of magnitude larger than the already reported upper limit in M82. Hence, we further confirmed the systematically peculiar molecular abundance in the aspect of formation mechanisms of molecules already reported in M82.