Hubble Shows Torrential Outflows from Infant Stars May Not Stop Them from Growing

Though our galaxy is an immense city of at least 200 billion stars, the details of how they formed remain largely cloaked in mystery. Scientists know that stars form from the collapse of huge hydrogen clouds that are squeezed under gravity to the point where nuclear fusion ignites. But only about 30 percent of the cloud’s initial mass winds up as a newborn star. Where does the rest of the hydrogen go during such a terribly inefficient process? For more information: Video credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center Paul R. Morris (USRA): Lead Producer Rogelio Bernal Andreo: Astrophotographer Martin Kornmesser (ESA): Visualizer Lars Lindberg Christensen (ESA): Visualizer Aaron E. Lepsch (ADNET): Technical Support Additional Visualizations: Zoom In To Star Formation: ESA, Silicon Worlds Wide Image of Orion Complex: Image courtesy of Roge