Our solar system formed from a molecular cloud, which was composed of gas and dust that was emitted into the interstellar medium (ISM), a vast space between stars. On collapse […]
interstellar medium
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Carbon-Chain Chemistry in the Interstellar Medium
The presence of carbon-chain molecules in the interstellar medium (ISM) has been known since the early 1970s and >100 such species have been identified to date, making up >40% of […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Press Release
Space Chemistry: Exploring Our Chemical Origins And Habitability
How did life begin? Is it common or rare across the Universe ? Can life on Earth survive elsewhere in the Solar system?
Posted inAstrochemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release, Water/Hycean Worlds & Oceanography
ALMA Traces The History Of Water In Planet Formation Back To The Interstellar Medium
Scientists studying a nearby protostar have detected the presence of water in its circumstellar disk. The new observations made with the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) mark the first detection […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Could Nucleobases Form In The ISM? A Theoretical Study In The Horsehead Nebula
This work presents the results of a theoretical study that analyzed the possibility of nucleobases to form in the interstellar medium, in the Horsehead nebula, which is a region considered […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Chemical Models Of Adenine Precursors Cyanamide And Carbodiimide In The Interstellar Medium
Cyanamide (NH2CN) and its isomer, carbodiimide (HNCNH), may form adenine in the interstellar medium (ISM) via a series of reactions.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Interstellar, Status Report
Resonant Infrared Irradiation Of CO And CH3OH Interstellar Ices
Solid-phase photo-processes involving icy dust grains greatly affect the chemical evolution of the interstellar medium by leading to the formation of complex organic molecules and by inducing photodesorption.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astrogeology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Carbonaceous Dust Grains Within Galaxies Seen In The First Billion Years Of Cosmic Time
Interstellar dust captures a significant fraction of elements heavier than helium in the solid state and is an indispensable component both in theory and observations of galaxy evolution.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Intelligence & Language, Status Report
Millimeter-wave Spectrum of 2-propanimine
Up to date, only 6 imines have been detected in the interstellar medium. The 3-carbon imine, 2-propanimine ((CH3)2C=NH), is predicted to be the structural isomer with the lowest energy in […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release
SwRI-Contributed Study Provides Darkest View Ever Of Interstellar Ices
An international team including Southwest Research Institute, Leiden University and NASA used observations from the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to achieve the darkest ever view of a dense interstellar […]