Three Puzzles in Galactic Extra-planar H I

Abstract

Many phenomena first detected in Galactic H i, such as high velocity clouds and gaseous warps, have now been detected and studied in nearby galaxies. Given this valuable perspective I examine three aspects of Galactic extra-planar gas that appear somewhat puzzling from our vantage in the Milky Way disk. I. Spiral galaxies have a rotation curve that decreases with distance above their mid-plane; where is the lagging halo in the Milky Way? II. Other systems show clear evidence for accretion of neutral gas; where is this gas in the Milky Way? III. Warps of the H i layer are common in the outskirts of disk galaxies; are we confident that we’ve correctly parameterized our own warp? The answers appear to be that lagging halo gas could well be present in the Galaxy but would be difficult to detect; that there is now solid evidence for the accretion of high-velocity H i clouds by the disk, though the details are still mysterious, and that the warp continues to baffle us, as it exhibits a puzzling morphology and kinematics.