Astronomers have discovered a ‘hot molecular core,’ a cocoon of molecules surrounding a newborn massive star, for the first time outside our Galaxy. The discovery, which marks the first important step for observational studies of extragalactic hot molecular cores and challenges the hidden chemical diversity of our universe, appears in a paper in The Astrophysical Journal Volume 827.
Fig.1) Artist’s concept image of the hot molecular core discovered in the Large Magellanic Cloud.
Credit: FRIS/Tohoku University. The figure is a derivative work of the following sources (ESO/M. Kornmesser; NASA, ESA, and S. Beckwith (STScI) and the HUDF Team; NASA/ESA and the Hubble Heritage Team (AURA/STScI)/HEI).