The substituted bicyclic aromatic hydrocarbon 1-cyanonaphthalene (C₁₁H₇N) was detected by McGuire and coworkers toward TMC-1 in 2021. The other singly-substituted compound, 2-cyanonaphthalene, was also detected. The discovery utilized the GOTHAM survey, which was performed with the Green Bank Telescope. Replacing a H atom in an aromatic ring compound with a polar moiety like the –CN cyanide group results in a dipole moment, which is either absent or weak in unsubstituted polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. Many other cyano-containing compounds have been detected due to their large dipole moments.

1-cyanonapthlalene (or 1-naphthonitrile or α-naphthonitrile or even 1-naphthalenecarbonitrile) is used in the synthesis of a variety of organic compounds, including "dyes, pharmaceuticals, and agrochemicals" as well as antifungals.