FOURIER-TRANSFORM SPECTROSCOPY OF THE ORION MOLECULAR CLOUD CORE

The near-millimeter and submillimeter wavelength emission-line spectru m of the Orion molecular cloud core has been measured at a resolution of 0.2 GHz with a new Fourier transform spectrometer at the Caltech Su bmillimeter Observatory. The broadband nature of the measured spectrum provides for a uniformly calibrated overview of the dominant broad-li ne radiators in the cloud core (excluding those molecules whose lines are obscured by our atmosphere). In total, 182 lines from 17 molecular species have been identified. Of these, CO accounts for the brightest lines, but the shock-enhanced SO2 and SO molecules dominate the subte rahertz line flux from the cloud core. In addition, highly excited lin es of the ''density tracers'' CS and HCN are seen throughout the measu red bands.