Detection of two interstellar polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons via spectral matched filtering

Identifying PAHs in space Midinfrared spectroscopy has shown that polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are abundant many astronomical objects, but this technique cannot determine which specific PAH molecules present. Radio astronomy could provide individual identifications if the molecule is sufficiently and a large dipole moment, expected to produce numbers of very weak lines. McGuire et al. performed stacking matched filter analysis search for radio observations TMC-1, located within interstellar Taurus Molecular Cloud. They identified emission from two isomers small cyanonapthalene, fused benzene rings with CN group attached. Science , issue p. 1265