Vertical distribution of Galactic disc stars and gas constrained by a molecular cloud complex

Abstract

We investigate the dynamical effects of a molecular cloud complex with a mass of about 10**7 M_sun and a size of a few 100 pc on the vertical distribution of stars and atomic hydrogen gas in a spiral galactic disc. Such massive complexes have now been observed in a number of spiral galaxies. The extended mass distribution in a complex, with an average mass density 6 times higher than the Oort limit, is shown to dominate the local gravitational field. This results in a significant redistribution of the surrounding disc components towards the mid-plane, with a resulting decrease in their vertical scaleheights. A surprising result is the large radial distance of about 500 pc from the complex centre over which the complex influences the disc. The complex has a comparable effect on the vertical distribution of HI in the galactic disc. This `pinching' or constraining effect should be detectable in the nearby spiral galaxies. Thus the gravitational field of a complex results in local corrugations of the stellar and HI vertical scaleheights, and the galactic disc potential is highly non-uniform on scales of the inter-complex separation of about 1 kpc.