Astrophysics 22 January 2026

Webb catches a baby Sun-like star making crystals — and blasting them toward comet territory

Webb catches a baby Sun-like star making crystals — and blasting them toward comet territory

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope detected crystalline silicates forming near the young protostar EC 53 during its regular accretion bursts, according to a study in Nature. The crystals appear during rapid heating events and are likely pushed outward by stellar winds, but researchers have not directly observed them reaching the comet-forming outer disk.
January 22, 2026