Star formation in the nucleus of NGC 253
The B-alpha and B-gamma lines of atomic hydrogen have been observed at eight positions near the nucleus of NGC 253 with 6 arcsec spatial resolution. Most if not all of the bolometric luminosity of the central 200 pc of this galaxy is probably produced by O and B stars which have recently formed. The spatial distribution of the line fluxes is similar to that of the 10 microns flux, supporting the hypothesis that the 10 microns radiation is powered by the newly formed stars. The extinction to the ionized gas varies over small distances in this region, explaining the discrepancies between extinction and Lyman continuum luminosity derived separately from visual and infrared line observations.