Nobeyama CO atlas of nearby spiral galaxies:: Distribution of molecular gas in barred and nonbarred spiral galaxies

The data from a CO (J = 1-0) mapping survey of 40 nearby spiral galaxies, performed with the Nobeyama 45 m telescope, are presented. The criteria of the sample selection were: (1) RC3 morphological type ranging from Sa to Scd, (2) distance of less than 25 Mpc, (3) inclination angle less than 79 degrees (RC3), (4) flux at 100 mu m higher than 10 Jy, and (5) spiral structure not destroyed by any interaction. The maps of CO cover most of the optical disk of the galaxies. We investigated the influence of bars on the distribution of molecular gas in spiral galaxies using these data. We confirmed that the degree of the central concentration is higher in barred spirals than in nonbarred spirals, as shown by previous studies. Furthermore, we present observational evidence that bars are efficient in driving molecular gas that lies within the bar length toward the center, while the role in bringing gas in from the outer parts of the disks is small. The transported gas accounts for about half of the molecular gas within the central region in barred spiral galaxies. We found a correlation between the degree of central concentration and the bar strength. Galaxies with stronger bars tend to have a higher central concentration. The correlation implies that stronger bars accumulate molecular gas toward the center more efficiently. These results are consistent with long-lived bars.