Related papers: Hydrocarbon anions in interstellar clouds and circ…
The majority of hydrogen in the interstellar medium (ISM) is in atomic form. The transition from atoms to molecules and, in particular, the formation of the H$_2$ molecule, is a key step in cosmic structure formation en route to stars.…
Observations were made for a number of carbon-rich circumstellar envelopes using the Phoenix spectrograph on the Gemini South telescope to determine the abundance of small carbon chain molecules. Vibration-rotation lines of the $\nu_{3}$…
This is the first in a series of three papers describing a project with the Cosmic Origins Spectrograph on the Hubble Space Telescope to measure abundances of the neutral interstellar medium (ISM) in a sample of 9 nearby star-forming…
We present the first detection of ($Z$)-1,2-ethenediol, (CHOH)$_2$, the enol form of glycolaldehyde, in the interstellar medium towards the G+0.693-0.027 molecular cloud located in the Galactic Center. We have derived a column density of…
Cassini discovered a plethora of neutral and ionised molecules in Titan's ionosphere including, surprisingly, anions and negatively charged molecules extending up to 13,800 u/q. In this letter we forward model the Cassini electron…
Recent laboratory experiments have demonstrated that, even though contribution from other reaction channels cannot be neglected, unsaturated hydrocarbons easily break their multiple C-C bonds to form CO after their interactions with atomic…
We present a model for the hydrogenation states of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the diffuse interstellar medium. First, we study the abundance of hydrogenation and charge states of PAHs due to photo-ionization,…
We present Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer (FUSE) observations of interstellar molecular hydrogen (H_2) in two Galactic high-velocity clouds (HVCs). Molecular hydrogen absorption is detected in the Magellanic Stream (abundance ~0.3…
We report detection of the 609u line of neutral atomic carbon in globules of the Helix nebula. The measurements were made towards the position of peak CO emission. At the same position, we obtained high-quality CO(2-1) and 13CO(2-1) spectra…
A long standing problem in astrochemistry is the inability of many current models to account for missing sulfur content. Many relatively simple species that may be good candidates to sequester sulfur have not been measured experimentally at…
We report the detection of the protonated form of HC7N in TMC-1. The discovery of the cation HC7NH+ was carried out via the observation of nine harmonically related lines in the Q-band using the Yebes 40m radiotelescope. The observed…
The aim of the present work is to perform a comprehensive analysis of the interstellar chemistry of nitrogen, focussing on the gas-phase formation of the smallest polyatomic species and in particular nitrogen hydrides. We present a new…
It has been proposed, or confirmed, that diamond nanoparticles exist in various environments in space: close to active galactic nuclei, in the vicinity of supernovae and pulsars, in the interior of several planets in the Solar system, in…
We study the oxygen abundance in five H II regions and seven planetary nebulae (PNe) located within 2 kpc from the Sun that have available spectra of high quality. Our analysis uses a similar procedure and the same atomic data to derive…
With the high-resolution spectroscopy now available in the optical and satellite UV, it is possible to determine the neutral/ionized column density ratios for several different elements in a single cloud. Assuming ionization equilibrium for…
The presence of H3+ in the interstellar medium was forecast almost four decades ago. Almost three decades ago it was asserted that its reactions with neutral molecular and atomic species directly lead to the production of many of the…
High spectral resolution mid-IR observations of ethylene (C2H4) towards the AGB star IRC+10216 were obtained using the Texas Echelon Cross Echelle Spectrograph (TEXES) at the NASA Infrared Telescope Facility (IRTF). Eighty ro-vibrational…
This paper is the fourth and final report on a project designed to study carbon abundances in a sample of planetary nebulae representing a broad range in progenitor mass and metallicity. We present newly acquired optical spectrophotometric…
Benzene (c-C6H6) formation in the inner 3 AU of a protostellar disk can be efficient, resulting in high abundances of benzene in the midplane region. The formation mechanism is different to that found in interstellar clouds and in…
A broad array of interstellar absorption features that appear in the ultraviolet spectra of bright sources allows us to measure the abundances and ionization states of many important heavy elements that exist as free atoms in the…