AMMONIA OBSERVATIONS OF NGC-6334 I(N)

Coincident with the far-infrared source NGC 6334 IN and water maser so urce E is a massive dense cloud which has the most intense ammonia (1, 1) emission of any known interstellar cloud. We have mapped the (3, 3 ) emission and find the cloud is extended 0.8 pc in the direction para llel to the Galactic plane, and 0.5 pc perpendicular to it. It has a v elocity gradient of 1 km s(-1) pc(-1) perpendicular to the Galactic pl ane. The gas kinetic temperature is about 30 K and the density is grea ter than 10(6) cm(-3). The mass of the cloud is about 3000 M., 3 times greater than previously estimated. The para-ammonia column density is 6-8 x 10(15) cm(-2) An ammonia abundance of 0.5-1.5 x 10(-8) is infer red, where the larger number assumes an early time ortho/ para ratio. This suggests either a cloud age of less than similar to 10(6) yr, or substantial depletion of ammonia.