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Methyl Radical

Encyclopedia of Astrobiology

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Synonyms

CH3

Definition

The methyl radical CH3 is stable enough to be observable under laboratory conditions in a dilute gas, although it readily dimerizes to ethane. It is an important intermediary in gas-phase interstellar chemistry. The incorporation of a methyl group, −CH3, into organic compounds can have fundamental biological effects.

History

The CH3 radical was detected in interstellar molecular clouds at wavelengths of about 16 microns using the Infrared Space Observatory (Feuchtgruber et al. 2000).

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References and Further Reading

  • Feuchtgruber H, Helmich FP, van Dishoeck EF, Wright CM (2000) Detection of interstellar CH3. Astrophys J 535:L111–L114

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Astronomy, University of Massachusetts, Lederle Graduate Research Tower B 619E, 710 North Pleasant Street, Amherst, MA, 01003-9305, USA

    William M. Irvine

Authors
  1. William M. Irvine
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to William M. Irvine .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Centro de Biología Molecular, Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

    Ricardo Amils

  2. Labo. d'Astrophysique de Bordeaux (LAB), Observatoire Aquitain des Sciences de l'Univers (OASU), Floirac CX, France

    Muriel Gargaud

  3. Centro de Astrobiología (CAB), Inst. Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial, Torrejón de Ardoz, Madrid, Spain

    José Cernicharo Quintanilla

  4. Geophysical Lab., Carnegie Institution of Washington, Washington, District of Columbia, USA

    Henderson James Cleaves

  5. Astronomy Department, University of Massachusetts, Amherst, Massachusetts, USA

    William M. Irvine

  6. Dépt. Sc. de la Terre et de l’Atmosphère, Université du Québec, Montréal, Montreal, Québec, Canada

    Daniele Pinti

  7. Centre National d'Etudes Spatiale (CNES) DPI/E2U, Paris CX, France

    Michel Viso

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© 2014 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg

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Irvine, W.M. (2014). Methyl Radical. In: Amils, R., et al. Encyclopedia of Astrobiology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1819-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1819-4

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  • Publisher Name: Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-642-27833-4

  • eBook Packages: Springer Reference Physics and AstronomyReference Module Physical and Materials ScienceReference Module Chemistry, Materials and Physics

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Chapter history

  1. Latest

    )
    Published:
    11 April 2019

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1819-5

  2. Original

    Methyl Radical
    Published:
    24 April 2015

    DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-27833-4_1819-4

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