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  • RESEARCH HIGHLIGHT

Dark space cloud caught donning halo of hydrogen molecules

For the first time, a Galactic cloud is seen producing an ingredient that is fundamental in star formation.
View of the Coalsack nebula

A dark Galactic cloud similar to the Coalsack nebula (central black blob above) has been seen for the first time in the act of generating molecular hydrogen. Credit: ESO/Digitized Sky Survey 2/Davide De Martin

A chilly cloud of molecular gas in the Milky Way is giving astronomers a rare look at one of the earliest steps in star formation.

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Nature 563, 158 (2018)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-018-07280-6

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