From a zoomed out, distant view, star-forming cloud L483 appears normal. But when a Northwestern University-led team of astrophysicists zoomed in closer and closer, things became weirder and weirder.
As the researchers peered closer into the cloud, they noticed that its magnetic field was curiously twisted. And then—as they examined a newborn star within the cloud—they spotted a hidden star, tucked behind it.
“It’s the star’s sibling, basically,” said Northwestern’s Erin Cox, who led the new study. “We think these stars formed far apart, and one moved closer to the other to form a binary. When the star traveled closer to its sibling, it shifted the dynamics of the cloud to twist its magnetic field.”
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