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We present new observations of the (6,6) and (9,9) inversion transitions of the hydronium ion toward Sagittarius B2(N) and W31C. Sensitive observations toward Sagittarius B2(N) show that the high, ~ 500 K, rotational temperatures characterizing the population of the highly-excited metastable H3O+ rotational levels are present over a wide range of velocities corresponding to the Sagittarius B2 envelope, as well as the foreground gas clouds between the Sun and the source. Observations of the same lines toward W31C, a line of sight that does not intersect the Central Molecular Zone, but instead traces quiescent gas in the Galactic disk, also imply a high rotational temperature of ~ 380 K, well in excess of the kinetic temperature of the diffuse Galactic interstellar medium. While it is plausible that some fraction of the molecular gas may be heated to such high temperatures in the active environment of the Galactic center, characterized by high X-ray and cosmic ray fluxes, shocks and high degree of turbulence, this is unlikely in the largely quiescent environment of the Galactic disk clouds. We suggest instead that the highly-excited states of the hydronium ion are populated mainly by exoergic chemical formation processes and temperature describing the rotational level population does not represent the physical temperature of the medium. The same arguments may be applicable to other symmetric top rotors, such as ammonia. This offers a simple explanation to the long-standing puzzle of the presence of a pervasive, hot molecular gas component in the central region of the Milky Way. Moreover, our observations suggest that this is a universal process, not limited to the active environments associated with galactic nuclei.
The Interstellar Medium (ISM) comprises gases at different temperatures and densities, including ionized, atomic, molecular species, and dust particles. The neutral ISM is dominated by neutral hydrogen and has ionization fractions up to 8%. The conce
A hot plasma is the dominant phase of the interstellar medium of early-type galaxies. Its origin can reside in stellar mass losses, residual gas from the formation epoch, and accretion from outside of the galaxies. Its evolution is linked to the dyna
Diffuse soft X-ray line emission is commonly used to trace the thermal and chemical properties of the hot interstellar medium, as well as its content, in nearby galaxies. Although resonant line scattering complicates the interpretation of the emissio
We report the discovery of a widespread population of collisionally excited methanol J = 4_{-1} to 3$_0 E sources at 36.2 GHz from the inner 66x18 (160x43 pc) of the Galactic center. This spectral feature was imaged with a spectral resolution of ~16.
We present a detailed spectroscopic study of the hot gas toward the Galactic bulge along the 4U 1820-303 sight line by a combination analysis of emission and absorption spectra. In addition to the absorption lines of OVII Kalpha, OVII Kbeta, OVIII Ka