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Hydrogen cyanide (HCN) is a compound with molecules each consisting of one hydrogen, one carbon, and one nitrogen atom. It is one of the poisonous chemicals termed cyanide, defined as chemicals that include carbon and nitrogen atoms joined by a triple bond (involving six electrons). It produces spectral lines that can be observed, some through atmospheric windows. It can serve as a tracer, clearly for the presence of its three elements, and for a gas cool enough to maintain molecules. It is useful for studies using isotope abundances. It has been observed on solar system bodies such as comets and moons, in the interstellar medium, and in protoplanetary disks.