[astro-ph.GA] Astrochemistry is living a golden age, with more than a quarter of the ~350 molecules in the current interstellar census having been detected over the last three years. One […]
molecular cloud
![Observed spectra compared to laboratory data for CO (left), 13CO2 (middle), and H2O (right) ices on carbonaceous dust analogs. -- [astro-ph.GA]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Molecule-specific.png?resize=1200%2C606&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry
Molecule-specific Diffusion And Desorption Of Interstellar Ices On Carbonaceous Dust
[astro-ph.GA] Interstellar ices form on dust grains in the coldest regions of molecular clouds and preserve key volatile reservoirs that could be incorporated into protoplanetary disks during star and planet […]
![Herschel H2 column density map (Sadavoy et al. 2012) of Perseus starless and prestellar cores. Labeled in magenta are the locations and names of the 15 starless and prestellar cores analyzed. The star-forming regions within Perseus are denoted in black.-- [astro-ph.GA]](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/08/Inventories.png?resize=1200%2C716&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry
Inventories of Rich Carbon-Chain Chemistry in Prestellar and Starless Cores in the Perseus Molecular Cloud
[astro-ph.GA] Carbon-chain molecules serve as an important reservoir of reactive organic matter that will eventually be incorporated into protoplanetary disks, planets, and cometary material. Prestellar and starless cores are composed […]
Posted inExoplanets, -moons, -comets
Planetesimal Formation Across the Stellar Mass Spectrum and its Influence on Exoplanet-Inherited Volatile Budgets
[astro-ph.EP] Protoplanetary discs emerging from collapsing molecular clouds are capable of forming planetesimals at the water snowline during both the cloud collapse and Class II disc phases; such a scenario […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Intelligence & Language, Interstellar, Status Report
Late Infall Of Molecular Cloud Material Reshaped The Outer Solar System
Understanding the physicochemical evolution of the outer protoplanetary disk is critical because it governed the distribution and delivery of key volatiles such as water and organic compounds to the inner, […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report, Stellar Cartography
From Gas To Stars Along The Spiral Wave: CO, HCN, And Star Formation Variations Across The Spiral Arms In NGC 4321 And M51
Molecular clouds form stars from the interstellar medium via gravitational collapse, following a sequence from low-density gas to high-density cores and eventually the formation of stars.
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Aromatic Rings In The Central Molecular Zone: Benzonitrile
In recent years, several aromatic molecules (benzene-based rings) have been detected in the cold molecular cloud TMC-1, with its CN-derivative, benzonitrile (c-C6H5CN), also identified in other nearby cold sources.
![polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) 1H-cyclopent[cd]indene (c-C11H8) -- astro-ph.GA](https://i0.wp.com/astrobiology.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/01/Discovery-of-1H-cyclopentcdindene.png?resize=1200%2C716&ssl=1)
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Discovery Of 1H-cyclopent[cd]indene (c-C11H8) In TMC-1 With The QUIJOTE Line Survey: A New Three-ringed Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon
We report the detection of the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) 1H-cyclopent[cd]indene (c-C11H8) in TMC-1 with the QUI- JOTE line survey. We detected 22 independent lines corresponding to 88 rotational transitions […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release
New Insights Into The Origins Of The Chemistry Of Life
Researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (MPE), in collaboration with astrophysicists from the Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), CSIC-INTA, have identified the largest sulfur-bearing molecule ever found in […]
Posted inAstrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Status Report
Expanding the C3H6O2 Isomeric Interstellar Inventory: Discovery of Lactaldehyde and Methoxyacetaldehyde in G+0.693-0.027
The tentative detection of 3-hydroxypropanal (HO(CH2)2C(O)H) toward the Galactic center molecular cloud G+0.693-0.027 prompts a systematic survey in this source aimed at detecting all C3H6O2 isomers with available spectroscopy. We […]