ASTRONOMY COLLOQUIUM

Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) are thought to sequester a large fraction (10-25%) of all carbon in the Universe. While strong evidence for their presence in space has existed since the 1980s, it is only in the last few years that the first individual PAH species have been definitively detected. In this talk, I'll describe the laboratory and observational efforts which have led to these discoveries, discuss our current understanding of the formation and molecular evolution of PAHs in space, and describe the growing body of evidence that these species, in no small part, survive the process of star- and planet-formation to influence the inventory of raw organic material delivered to early planets. I'll conclude by taking a critical look at open questions related to PAH chemistry in space and the prospects for the field going forward.