What is "cyano radical"

n. the monovalent group -CN in a chemical compound [syn: cyano group, cyanide group, cyanide radical]

The cyano radical is a radical with molecular formula ·CN. The cyano radical was one of the first detected molecules in the interstellar medium and has helped the field of astrochemistry a great deal. The first discovery was performed with a coude spectrograph which was made famous and credible due to this detection. ·CN has been observed in both diffuse clouds and dense clouds. Usually, CN is detected in regions with hydrogen cyanide, hydrogen isocyanide, and HCHN since it is also used In the creation and destruction of these molecules.