Clare Dobbs

Performing numerical simulations of galaxies can tell us a lot about GMCs and the ISM, but to best compare with observations, we need to use the same techniques as observers. We have previously produced synthetic HI maps in the plane of the galaxy, from simulations, which we used to compare with the Canadian Galactic Plane Survey (CGPS). From these we showed that feedback was required both to match the scale height of the disc, and to reproduce the amount of HI self absorption (HISA) seen in the Galaxy (Acreman et al. 2012). The image above shows an HI map from a simulations viewed as if it was an external galaxy. With these sorts of techniques, we plan to compare with The HI Nearby Galaxy Survey (THINGS), and also produce CO maps of galaxies.