Collisional Removal of H I from the Inner Disks of Virgo Cluster Galaxies

There is sufficient observational evidence to show that many Virgo Cluster spirals are H I-deficient in their inner disks in addition to being H I-deficient globally as previously established. It collisions between galaxies in a cluster can lead to the removal of H I gas from these galaxies while leaving the $H_2$ gas undisturbed. This follows directly from the application of the Spitzer-Baade collisional gas removal mechanism to galaxies consisting of stars and a 2-component interstellar media consisting of H I and $H_2$, with H I having the largest filling factor. This can account for both the obsd. H I deficiency in the inner regions and the normal H2 content of these galaxies. The frequency of galaxy collisions in the Virgo Cluster, which has been underestimated previously, is shown to be large enough to make collisional gas removal a viable mechanism