An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics

A colorless gas with a pungent, suffocating odor used as an adhering component of glues in many wood products. Formaldehyde (H₂CO) is obtained most commonly by the oxidation of methanol or petroleum gases such as methane, ethane, etc.

In the → interstellar medium, formaldehyde is formed the surface of → dust grains. It is
then converted into gas phase by → photodesorption. H₂CO was the first → organic molecule discovered in the ISM (Lewis E. Snyder et al. 1969, Phys. Rev. Lett., 22, 679).

See also: From form(ic) acid, from Fr. formique, + → aldehyde.