2018 Census of Interstellar, Circumstellar, Extragalactic, Protoplanetary Disk, and Exoplanetary Molecules

TL;DR

This paper provides a comprehensive census of 204 molecular species detected in interstellar, circumstellar, extragalactic, protoplanetary, and exoplanetary environments, summarizing detection methods, facilities, and spectral data.

Contribution

It offers the first detailed compilation of molecular detections across various astronomical environments, including detection details and spectroscopic data.

Findings

204 molecules detected across multiple environments

Detection methods and spectral data summarized

Tentative and disputed detections listed

Abstract

To date, 204 individual molecular species, comprised of 16 different elements, have been detected in the interstellar and circumstellar medium by astronomical observations. These molecules range in size from two atoms to seventy, and have been detected across the electromagnetic spectrum from cm-wavelengths to the ultraviolet. This census presents a summary of the first detection of each molecular species, including the observational facility, wavelength range, transitions, and enabling laboratory spectroscopic work, as well as listing tentative and disputed detections. Tables of molecules detected in interstellar ices, external galaxies, protoplanetary disks, and exoplanetary atmospheres are provided. A number of visual representations of this aggregate data are presented and briefly discussed in context.