  High-resolution spectra of molecular hydrogen in the Homunculus nebula allow
for the first direct measurement of the systemic velocity of Eta Carinae.
Near-infrared long-slit data for H2 1-0 S(1) lambda 21218 obtained with the
Phoenix spectrometer on the Gemini South telescope give Vsys=-8.1pm1 km/s
(heliocentric), or VLSR=-19.7pm1 km/s, from the average of the near and far
sides of the Homunculus. This measurement considerably improves the precision
for the value of -7pm10 km/s inferred from neighboring O-type stars in the
Carina nebula. New near-infrared spectra also provide a high-resolution line
profile of [Fe II] lambda 16435 emission from gas condensations known as the
Weigelt objects without contamination from the central star, revealing a line
shape with complex kinematic structure. Previously, uncertainty in the Weigelt
knots' kinematics was dominated by the adopted systemic velocity of Eta Car.
