A detection of sulfur-bearing cyclic hydrocarbons in space
Abstract Molecules harbouring sulfur are thought to have played a key role in the biological processes of life on Earth, and thus, they are of much interest when found in space. Here we report on the astronomical detection of a six-membered sulfur-bearing cyclic hydrocarbon in the interstellar medium. Observations of the Galactic Centre molecular cloud G+0.693-0.027 reveal the presence of 2,5-cyclohexadien-1-thione, which is a structural isomer of thiophenol ( c -C 6 H 6 S). For the astronomical identification, we first performed precise laboratory measurements of the thiophenol discharge products system. These measurements, conducted in the radio band using a chirped-pulse Fourier transform microwave spectrometer, enabled us to characterize this highly polar molecular species and provided unambiguous fingerprints needed to identify this organosulfur compound in space, which now ranks as the largest interstellar sulfur-bearing molecule. These results herald the discovery of a family of prebiotically relevant sulfur-bearing species, which potentially act as a bridge between the chemical inventory of the interstellar medium and the composition of the minor bodies of the Solar System.
Authors
- Andrés Megías (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6389-7172)
- Shaoshan Zeng (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-3721-374X)
- Laura Colzi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8064-6394)
- Juan García de la Concepción (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6484-9546)
- David San Andrés (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7535-4397)
- Álvaro López-Gallifa (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6049-9366)
- Mitsunori Araki (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4530-9741)
- Christian Endres (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-7104-8795)
- V. M. Rivilla (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2887-5859)
- Valerio Lattanzi (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9819-1658)
- S. Martín (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9281-2919)
- Miguel Sanz‐Novo (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9629-0257)
- Antonio Martínez-Henares (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5191-2075)
- Izaskun Jiménez-Serra (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-4493-8714)
- P. Caselli (ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-1481-7911)
- Miguel A. Requena-Torres
Institutions
- Universidad Complutense de Madrid (ES)
- Pioneer (United States) (US)
- Atacama Large Millimeter Submillimeter Array (CL)
- Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics (DE)
- Centro de Astrobiología (ES)
- European Southern Observatory (CL)
- Towson University (US)
- Universidad de Extremadura (ES)
Publication Details
- Journal
- Nature Astronomy
- Published
- 2026-01-23
- DOI
- https://doi.org/10.1038/s41550-025-02749-7
- Primary Topic
- Astrophysics and Star Formation Studies
- Type
- article
- Field-Weighted Citation Impact
- 0.00
Funders
- Comunidad de Madrid
- Ministerio de Ciencia, Innovación y Universidades
- European Commission
- Max-Planck-Gesellschaft
- Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique
- Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas
- RIKEN
- European Regional Development Fund
- Agencia Estatal de Investigación
- European Social Fund