Detection of new sources of methanol emission at 95 GHz with the Mopra telescope

Abstract

A southern hemisphere survey of methanol emission sources has been carried out using the Australia Telescope National Facility Mopra millimetre telescope. 85 sources, the majority of them masers, have been detected in the 80-71 A+ transition of methanol at 95 GHz. Together with a similar northern hemisphere survey, this completes the search for 95-GHz methanol emission from the Galactic plane. The previously found correlation between intensities of methanol emission at 44 and 95 GHz is confirmed here with the larger sample of sources. The results of large velocity gradient statistical equilibrium calculations confirm the classification of these sources as class I methanol masers pumped through collisional excitation.