A Massive Star’s Unusual Formation Surprise

Astronomers have uncovered an extraordinary discovery in the formation of stars, observing a colossal young star, MM 1a, forming a smaller companion star, MM 1b, instead of planets. Using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), researchers identified MM 1b on the outskirts of MM 1a’s dense disk of dust and gas, a region traditionally associated with planet formation.