2003ApJ...590..314R

We have surveyed 12 Galactic hot molecular cores for interstellar acetic acid (CH₃COOH). This is the most extensive search for acetic acid to date. We have detected a new source of acetic acid toward the high-mass hot molecular core source G34.3+0.2. Using a temperature range between 70 and 185 K, we find a CH₃COOH column density range of (0.77-1.64)x10¹⁵ cm^–2 toward G34.3+0.2. This gives a relative CH₃COOH/HCOOCH₃abundance ratio of ∼3.3x10^–2, which is comparable to the abundance ratio of (3-6)x10^–2 found toward Sgr B2(N-LMH) and W51e2 by Remijan and colleagues. All currently known acetic acid sources are within 7 kpc of the Galactic center. Furthermore, our survey suggests that hot molecular cores that have a mass range between 200 and 2000 M_☉and do not show a distinct differentiation between O and N chemistry may be the best places to search for acetic acid and the structurally similar biologically important molecule glycine.