DETECTION OF E-CYANOMETHANIMINE TOWARD SAGITTARIUS B2(N) IN THE GREEN BANK TELESCOPE PRIMOS SURVEY

Journal Article · Fri Mar 01 04:00:00 EST 2013 · Astrophysical Journal Letters

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1088/2041-8205/765/1/L10· OSTI ID:22130862

Zaleski, Daniel P.; Seifert, Nathan A.; Steber, Amanda L.; Muckle, Matt T.; Loomis, Ryan A.; Vasquez, David; Nyiramahirwe, Jolie; Sciortino, Nicole; Johnson, Kennedy; Pate, Brooks H. ^[1]; Corby, Joanna F. ^[2]; Martinez, Oscar Jr.; Crabtree, Kyle N.; McCarthy, Michael C. ^[3]; Jewell, Philip R.; Remijan, Anthony J. ^[4]; Hollis, Jan M. ^[5]

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1. Department of Chemistry, University of Virginia, McCormick Road, Charlottesville, VA 22904 (United States)
2. Department of Astronomy, University of Virginia, McCormick Road, Charlottesville, VA 22904 (United States)
3. Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, 60 Garden Street, Cambridge, MA 02138 (United States)
4. National Radio Astronomy Observatory, 520 Edgemont Road, Charlottesville, VA 22903-2475 (United States)
5. NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, MD 20771 (United States)

The detection of E-cyanomethanimine (E-HNCHCN) toward Sagittarius B2(N) is made by comparing the publicly available Green Bank Telescope (GBT) PRIMOS survey spectra to laboratory rotational spectra from a reaction product screening experiment. The experiment uses broadband molecular rotational spectroscopy to monitor the reaction products produced in an electric discharge source using a gas mixture of NH{sub 3} and CH{sub 3}CN. Several transition frequency coincidences between the reaction product screening spectra and previously unassigned interstellar rotational transitions in the PRIMOS survey have been assigned to E-cyanomethanimine. A total of eight molecular rotational transitions of this molecule between 9 and 50 GHz are observed with the GBT. E-cyanomethanimine, often called the HCN dimer, is an important molecule in prebiotic chemistry because it is a chemical intermediate in proposed synthetic routes of adenine, one of the two purine nucleobases found in DNA and RNA. New analyses of the rotational spectra of both E-cyanomethanimine and Z-cyanomethanimine that incorporate previous millimeter-wave measurements are also reported.

• OSTI ID: 22130862
• Journal Information: Astrophysical Journal Letters, Journal Name: Astrophysical Journal Letters Journal Issue: 1 Vol. 765; ISSN 2041-8205
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

79 ASTRONOMY AND ASTROPHYSICS
ABUNDANCE
ACETONITRILE
AMMONIA
CATALOGS
DETECTION
DIMERS
DNA
ELECTRIC DISCHARGES
HYDROCYANIC ACID
INDICATORS
MIXTURES
MOLECULES
RNA
SCREENING
SPECTRA
SPECTROSCOPY
TELESCOPES