New detections of HC5N towards hot cores associated with 6.7 GHz methanol masers

We present new detections of cyanodiacetylene (HC₅N) towards hot molecular cores, observed with the Tidbinbilla 34 m radio telescope (DSS–34). In a sample of 79 hot molecular cores, HC₅N was detected towards 35. These results are counter to the expectation that long chain cyanopolyynes, such as HC₅N, are not typically found in hot molecular cores, unlike their shorter chain counterpart HC₃N. However, it is consistent with recent models which suggest HC₅N may exist for a limited period during the evolution of hot molecular cores.