What's Happening?
NASA's Hubble Space Telescope has captured a striking image of a jet of ionized gas from a forming star, known as HH 80/81, in the Sagittarius constellation. These Herbig-Haro objects are created when
jets of ionized gas from a protostar collide with slower-moving gas, causing the gas to glow. The outflow from HH 80/81 stretches over 32 light-years, making it the largest known protostellar outflow. The protostar responsible, IRAS 18162-2048, is about 20 times the mass of the Sun and is the most massive in the L291 molecular cloud. Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 has allowed astronomers to study the fine details and movements of these objects, revealing that parts of HH 80/81 move at speeds over 1,000 km/s.
Why It's Important?
The discovery and detailed observation of HH 80/81 provide significant insights into the processes of star formation and the dynamics of protostellar outflows. Understanding these phenomena is crucial for astronomers as they study the life cycles of stars and the formation of planetary systems. The ability to observe such high-speed outflows from a massive protostar challenges existing theories, which typically associate Herbig-Haro objects with low-mass stars. This finding could lead to a reevaluation of current models of star formation, potentially impacting our understanding of the early stages of stellar evolution and the conditions that lead to the formation of stars and planets.
