pyrene Archives - Astrobiology

Optimized geometry of cyanocoronene, C24H11CN, in its principal axis system spanned by the vectors a and b. The highly symmetric coronene has 12 identical carbon sites for CN-substitution that all result in the same cyanocoronene. Its permanent electric dipole moment was calculated to be µa = 5.67 D and µb = 0.59 D. -- astro-ph.GA

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Status Report

Discovery of the 7-ring PAH Cyanocoronene (C24H11CN) in GOTHAM Observations of TMC-1

by Keith CowingApril 10, 2025September 18, 2025

We present the synthesis and laboratory rotational spectroscopy of the 7-ring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) cyanocoronene (C24H11CN) using a laser-ablation assisted cavity-enhanced Fourier transform microwave spectrometer.

(a) Cross sections of four different PAHs in the UV region (0.2-0.4 µm). On average, Naphthalene, Anthracene, and Pyrene have stronger cross-sections among all 4 considered. (b) Collective cross sections of PAHs and other molecules on Earth (taken from Kopparapu et al. (2021)) for the wavelength coverage of a nominal 8m class Habitable Worlds Observatory (0.2-2 µm). PAHs have stronger features than other molecules in this region. The region between 0.3-0.4 µm serves as a promising window to detect PAHs due to the least overlap with other molecular cross-sections. -- astro-ph.EP

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Habitable Zones, Imaging & Spectroscopy, SETI & Technosignatures, Status Report

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) As An Extraterrestrial Atmospheric Technosignature

by Keith CowingJanuary 14, 2025January 14, 2025

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons are prevalent in the universe and interstellar medium but are primarily attributed to anthropogenic sources on Earth, such as fossil fuel combustion and firewood burning.

A representation of 1-cyanopyrene detected in space. Credit: NSF/NSF NRAO/AUI/S. Dagnello.

Astrochemistry, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release

The Largest Molecule Ever Detected Using Radioastronomy

by Keith CowingOctober 25, 2024October 25, 2024

The discovery of a four-ring carbon molecule in a distant interstellar cloud may help to reveal how our own solar system formed.

Pyrene - PubChem

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Astronomy & Telescopes, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Press Release

Molecules That Store Carbon Discovered In A Distant Interstellar Cloud

by Keith CowingOctober 24, 2024

The discovery of pyrene derivatives in a distant interstellar cloud may help to reveal how our own solar system formed.

GOTHAM spectra showcasing several 1-cyanopyrene lines detected in TMC-1 observations. The original GOTHAM observational data for which one channel corresponds to 1.4 kHz were smoothed with a Hanning window to a resolution of 14 kHz, depicted in black. The spectrum of 1-cyanopyrene is overplotted in violet using source-dependent molecular parameters as reported in Table S4. The quantum numbers of each transition, ignoring 14N nuclear electric quadrupole splitting, are reported. Each line contains multiple closely spaced K-components of each transition which are denoted α, β, γ, δ = {0,1}, {1,2}, {2,3}, {3,4}. -- astro-ph.GA

Astrochemistry, Astrogeology, Biochemistry & Organic Chemistry, Biophysics, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Comets and Asteroids, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Interstellar, Sample Return, Status Report

Discovery Of Interstellar 1-cyanopyrene: A Four-ring Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon In TMC-1

by Keith CowingOctober 5, 2024October 7, 2024

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are thought to be the most abundant class of molecules in space, yet their interstellar lifecycle is poorly understood due to difficulties detecting individual PAHs.