Astrochemistry: Results from Herschel Space Observatory

The interstellar medium consisting of a plethora of molecules provides
a natural chemical laboratory in which reaction networks so far unexplored in terrestrial laboratories can be observed. Astrochemistry is an emerging field of study in which spectroscopic studies of the molecules in the interstellar medium are performed with essentially two goals. The first aim is to detect new molecules  and their transitions, and to study the structure and chemistry of these molecules. The second is to estimate the role of these molecules in the cooling of the interstellar medium which is an essential condition for the formation of the stars or any structure for that matter.
Energy considerations show that for most molecules the brightest
transitions occur in the far-infrared wavelength regime. The Herschel
Space Observatory, launched in May 2009, has provided a unique observing platform for spectroscopic observations in  far-infrared
wavelengths at reasonably high angular resolutions. In this talk I
will present some of the most recent results on both emission and
absorption spectroscopy of the interstellar medium and the star
forming molecular clouds as obtained by Herschel.