Neutral Hydrogen in the Magellanic Clouds

Abstract

We review observations of neutral atomic hydrogen (HI) in the Magellanic Clouds (MCs). Being the nearest gas-rich neighbours of the Milky Way the MCs give us an excellent opportunity to study in detail the structure and evolution of the interstellar medium (ISM) and the effect of interactions between galaxies. HI in emission provides a probe of the structure and velocity field of the Clouds, allowing the study of their velocity dispersion, 3-D structure, and large-scale total-mass distribution. Recent data from Australia Telescope Compact Array surveys reveal a morphology (for both Clouds) which is heavily dominated by the effects of local star-formation, rotational shear, fragmentation, self-gravity and turbulence. The new data, which has a spatial resolution down to 10 pc, also allows the study of the distribution functions in velocity and mass for HI clouds. We discuss the morphology, dynamics and giant shell population of the LMC and SMC.