Interstellar molecules as a research area focuses on the detection, identification, and characterization of molecules in the interstellar medium (ISM), and on understanding their formation pathways, destruction processes, and astrochemical evolution. It integrates radio, millimeter, infrared, and UV spectroscopy with theoretical chemistry and reaction-kinetics modeling to constrain physical conditions in molecular clouds, diffuse clouds, and circumstellar envelopes. Research addresses gas-phase and grain-surface chemistry, isotopic fractionation, and the role of UV radiation, cosmic rays, and shocks in driving molecular complexity. This field informs models of star and planet formation, the chemical enrichment of galaxies, and the potential prebiotic inventory delivered to nascent planetary systems.
Sub-Neptunes are the most common type of planet in our galaxy. Bigger than Earth but smaller than Neptune, these worlds remain deeply mysterious because scientists still do not know what they are made of. What astronomers ...
Astronomy
Jul 10, 2026
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Stars like our sun are formed from the collapse of stellar objects called prestellar cores, cold and dense concentrations of gas and dust held together by gravity. While many questions remain about the exact mechanisms of ...
Astronomy
Jul 10, 2026
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The space between stars may seem like a barren desert, but over the past few decades scientists have been finding all sorts of interesting chemicals in it. From the precursors to proteins to the building blocks of cell membranes, ...
Astronomy
Jun 10, 2026
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Billions of years ago, a young spiral galaxy began to grow in a crowded part of the universe. It pulled in gas and small companion galaxies, slowly building up the bright central region and sweeping spiral arms we see today.
Astronomy
May 14, 2026
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You're a long-necked Titanosaur grazing the plains and chomping away on tree leaves about 100 million years ago in the Early Cretaceous in what would eventually become a future Starbucks location. You look up at the night ...
Planetary Sciences
May 11, 2026
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Astronomers can use telescopes to find specific molecules in the atmospheres of neighboring planets, in nebulae—clouds of interstellar dust and gas—hundreds or thousands of light-years away, or in galaxies beyond the far ...
Astronomy
Apr 27, 2026
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Fifteen years after Western astronomers first discovered "buckyballs" in space (soccer ball-shaped molecules that resemble a hollow sphere), they're back with stunning images and rich data generated using the James Webb Space ...
Astronomy
Apr 22, 2026
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This month's NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope Picture of the Month offers us a two-for-one on brand new stars—with some potential planets thrown in as well. This visual highlights Webb's views of the protoplanetary ...
Planetary Sciences
Apr 3, 2026
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Astronomers have found that both the core of our Milky Way and the earliest proto-galaxies in the universe share a surprising trait: They are unusually calm and quiet in terms of harsh radiation. This tranquility is not just ...
Astronomy
Mar 12, 2026
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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 ...
Astronomy
Jan 23, 2026
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