Properties of the Compact HII Region Complex G-0.02-0.07
  We present new extinction maps and high-resolution Paschen alpha images of
G-0.02-0.07, a complex of compact HII regions located adjacent to the
M-0.02-0.07 giant molecular cloud, 6 parsecs in projection from the center of
the Galaxy. These HII regions, which lie in projection just outside the
boundary of the Sgr A East supernova remnant, represent one of the most recent
episodes of star formation in the central parsecs of the Galaxy. The 1.87
micron extinctions of regions A, B and C are almost identical, approximately
1.5 magnitudes. Region D, in contrast, has a peak 1.87 micron extinction of 2.3
magnitudes. Adopting the Nishiyama et al. (2008) extinction law, we find these
extinctions correspond to visual extinctions of A_V = 44.5 and A_V = 70,
respectively. The similar and uniform extinctions of regions A, B and C are
consistent with that expected for foreground extinction in the direction of the
Galactic center, suggesting that they lie at the front side of the M-0.02-0.07
molecular cloud. Region D is more compact, has a higher extinction and is thus
suspected to be younger and embedded in a dense core in a compressed ridge on
the western edge of this cloud.
