Gas structure comparison; NGC 253 and Milky Way

We find that the size-line width relations in NGC253 and the GC have similar slope, but NGC253 has larger line widths by factors of ~2-3. The {sigma}2/R dependency on column density shows that, in the GC, on scales of 10-100pc the kinematics of gas over N>3x1021/cm^2^ are compatible with gravitationally bound structures.

In NGC253 this is only the case for column densities N>3x1022/cm^2^. The increased line widths in NGC253 originate in the lower column density gas. This high velocity dispersion, not gravitationally self-bound gas, is likely in transient structures created by the combination of high average densities and feedback in the starburst.