The NASA Ames PAH IR Spectroscopic Database
Description
The astronomical emission features, formerly dubbed the unidentified infrared bands, are now commonly ascribed to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). The laboratory experiments and computational modeling done at the NASA Ames Research Center to create an unrivaled collection of PAH IR spectra relevant to test and refine the PAH hypothesis have been assembled into a spectroscopic database. This database contains the laboratory-measured and density-functional-theory-computed spectra of over 4,000 PAHs and PAH clusters. Online and offline Python/IDL tools are available to work with the data.
Data
| File or URL | Description/Data Usage | File Size | Date |
|---|---|---|---|
| https://www.astrochemistry.org/pahdb/ | Database of over 4,000 laboratory-measured and density-functional-theory-computed spectra of PAHs and PAH clusters. | Feb 16, 2022 |
Related Works
| DOI | Description |
|---|---|
| https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/abc2c8 | The NASA Ames PAH IR Spectroscopic Database: The Laboratory Spectra |
| https://doi.org/10.3847/1538-4365/aaa019 | The NASA Ames PAH IR Spectroscopic Database: Computational Version 3.00 with Updated Content and the Introduction of Multiple Scaling Factors |
| https://doi.org/10.1088/0067-0049/211/1/8 | THE NASA AMES PAH IR SPECTROSCOPIC DATABASE VERSION 2.00: UPDATED CONTENT, WEB SITE, AND ON(OFF)LINE TOOLS |
| https://doi.org/10.1088/0067-0049/189/2/341 | THE NASA AMES POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBON INFRARED SPECTROSCOPIC DATABASE: THE COMPUTED SPECTRA |
Summary
| Lead Investigator(s) |
 Boersma, Christiaan |
|---|---|
| Funding Sources | CAN|NPP|other |
| Mission/Projects | James Webb Space Telescope (JWST)|Other|Spitzer Space Telescope|Stratospheric Observatory for Infra-Red Astronomy (SOFIA)|Other|Gemini Observatory |
| Themes |
Characterizing Environments for Habitability and BiosignaturesCoevolution of Life and the Physical EnvironmentAbiotic Building Blocks of LifeEarly Life and Increasing ComplexityConstructing Habitable Worlds
|
| Keywords | RNA world|polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH)|polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH)|haze|National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) |
| Disciplines | planetary science|astrochemistry|astronomy|biochemistry|physical chemistry|spectroscopy|astrophysics |
| Team Members |
Bauschlicher, Charles W. Hudgins, Douglas M. |
Fieldwork Location(s)
How to Cite
When using this dataset, please cite the data package
provided here as well as original publications,
when available.
License terms and conditions apply.
