Kinematics of ionized gas in the barred Seyfert galaxy NGC 4151

We have determined the structure and kinematics of ionized gas in the weak oval bar of the archetypal Seyfert 1 galaxy, NGC 4151, using the TAURUS Fabry-Perot interferometer to simultaneously map the distribution and kinematics of H beta emission. We also present broad-band ultraviolet imaging of the host galaxy, obtained with XMM-Newton, which shows the detailed distribution of star formation in the bar and in the optically faint outer spiral arms. We compare the distribution and kinematics of ionized gas with that previously determined in neutral hydrogen by Mundell & Shone; we suggest that the distribution of bright, patchy ultraviolet emission close to the H I shocks is consistent with ionization by star clusters that have formed in compressed pre-shock gas. These clusters then travel ballistically through the gaseous shock to ionize gas downstream along the leading edge of the bar. In addition, we detect, for the first time, ionized gas within the shock itself, which is streaming to smaller radii in the same manner as the neutral gas.