Largest aromatic molecule found in deep space is double the size of previous record holder

Good news! We are not alone!

What if the whole universe/cosmos is a just a very advanced virtual world like an aquarium created superintelligent beings? Would this not explain Where is the Galileo Galilei of our time to prove this theory? Just kidding!

"Scientists have identified cyanocoronene for the first time in interstellar space. The molecule, composed of seven interconnected benzene rings and a cyano group was found in the cold, dark Taurus molecular cloud, a region known for its rich chemistry – a cradle for new stars. This new discovery suggests that even more complex molecules may be common in the cosmos. ..."

From the abstract:

"We present the synthesis and laboratory rotational spectroscopy of the seven-ring polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) cyanocoronene (C24H11CN) using a laser-ablation-assisted cavity-enhanced Fourier transform microwave spectrometer. A total of 71 transitions were measured and assigned between 6.8 and 10.6 GHz. Using these assignments, we searched for emission from cyanocoronene in the Green Bank Telescope (GBT) Observations of TMC-1: Hunting Aromatic Molecules project observations of the cold dark molecular cloud TMC-1 using the 100 m GBT. We detect a number of individually resolved transitions in ultrasensitive X-band observations and perform a Markov Chain Monte Carlo analysis to derive best-fit parameters, including a total column density of 

 at a temperature of ... K.

A spectral stacking and matched filtering analysis provides a robust 17.3σ significance to the overall detection. The derived column density is comparable to that of cyano-substituted naphthalene, acenaphthylene, and pyrene, defying the trend of decreasing abundance with increasing molecular size and complexity found for carbon chains. We discuss the implications of the detection for our understanding of interstellar PAH chemistry and highlight major open questions and next steps."

Largest aromatic molecule found in deep space is double the size of previous record holder | Research | Chemistry World

Discovery of the Seven-ring Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbon Cyanocoronene (C24H11CN) in GOTHAM Observations of TMC-1 (open access)

Cyanocoronene was found in a molecular cloud 430 light years from Earth