A young star caught forming like a planet
A young star caught forming like a planet
December 14, 2018
Astronomers have captured one of the most detailed views of a young star taken to date, and revealed an unexpected companion in orbit around it.
While observing the young star, astronomers led by Dr John Ilee from the University of Leeds discovered it was not in fact one star, but two.
The main object, referred to as MM 1a, is a young massive star surrounded by a rotating disc of gas and dust that was the focus of the scientists' original investigation.
A faint object, MM 1b, was detected just beyond the disc in orbit around MM 1a. The team believe this is one of the first examples of a "fragmented" disc to be detected around a massive young star.
"Stars form within large clouds of gas and dust in interstellar space," said Dr Ilee, from the School of Physics and Astronomy at Leeds.
More:
https://www.brightsurf.com/news/article/121418472430/a-young-star-caught-forming-like-a-planet.html