2002A&A...383...56G

The fueling of the starburst in M82 may be related to a stellar bar which pushes gas towards the center where it forms stars. The observation by McKeith et al. (1993A&A...272...98M) of the near-IR CaII photospheric absorption line allows a direct velocity measurement of the stars in M82, and provides by this a confirmation of the predicted x₁ and x₂-orbits of the bar in M82. From this and other observations we find that the mass of the x₂-orbit stars is ∼15% of the mass of the bar, and that the mass of the bar of 2x10⁹M_☉ is 20-40% of M82's mass. This mass concentration of ∼1kpc extent at the center of M82 underlines the dynamic importance of the bar.