Hydrogen Cyanide in HD 163296
![a bright blue young star with a cloud of cold gas surrounding it](https://public.nrao.edu/wp-content/uploads/2021/09/Fig6_HD163296_HCN_260GH_hf1_BLUElogSeeThruStars3K75percent.jpg)
This composite image of ALMA data from the young star HD 163296 shows hydrogen cyanide emission laid over a starfield. The MAPS project zoomed in on hydrogen cyanide and other organic and inorganic compounds in planet-forming disks to gain a better understanding of the compositions of young planets and how the compositions link to where planets form in a protoplanetary disk.
Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/D. Berry (NRAO), K. Öberg et al (MAPS)
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