THINGS: The HI Nearby Galaxy Survey

Abstract

We present “The HI Nearby Galaxy Survey (THINGS)”, a high spectral (≤5.2 kms−1) and spatial (~ 6′′) resolution survey of HI emission in 34 nearby galaxies obtained using the NRAO Very Large Array (VLA). The overarching scientific goal of THINGS is to investigate fundamental characteristics of the interstellar medium (ISM) related to galaxy morphology, star formation and mass distribution across the Hubble sequence. Unique characteristics of the THINGS database are the homogeneous sensitivity as well as spatial and velocity resolution of the HI data which is at the limit of what can be achieved with the VLA for a significant number of galaxies.