https://phys.org/news/2018-06-fingerprints-molecules-space.html

In addition to stars, galaxies are populated by regions that contain gigantic dust and gas clouds. Such regions, making up the interstellar medium (ISM), act as the birthplace for new stars which form when the clouds collapse under their own gravity and reach sufficient densities for fusion reactions to occur. In order to better understand these processes, it is important to know exactly the chemical composition of the ISM which is most often determined via the frequencies (spectral lines) measured by radio telescopes.

In the case of the amide ion, the team led by Roland Wester has measured two previously unknown frequencies in the laboratory for the first time. The adopted method, known as terahertz spectroscopy, has allowed the lines to be determined a hundred times more accurately than was previously possible. "In this technique, wavelengths between microwaves and infrared light are used," explains the physicist. "This allows the rotation of very small molecules to be studied. For larger molecules, vibrations of whole molecular groups can be determined."