We used the file TOTAL\_HI.FIT from the CD-ROM supplied with the printed atlas to extract the proper sky region. The data were transformed from Galactic to equatorial coordinates, accounting for the change of scale from one side of the image to the other. This was done by dividing each pixel value by its [*cos(b)*]{}, to yield consistent units over the field. The HI total column density from the LDS is shown in Figure 6 together with the IRAS 100$\mu$m map and confirms the general impression from the Lieu (1996) map. The HI distribution has a region with lower N(HI) at the center of the Virgo Ring (VR) and ridges of higher HI emission on both sides of the VR.

We also produced position-velocity (PV) plots using the channel data from the LDS, limiting these to l=276.0, the galactic longitude of the HI peak which coincides with the main FIR emission blob in area A of Fig. 6 (the more intense of the FIR peaks), to the center of the VR (l=283.0), and to the second highest FIR peak at l=290.5. The PV plots are shown in Figure 7 and indicate that at the position of the VR there is a 