Hubble Observes Stars Flaring to Life in Orion
Forming stars, called protostars, dazzle a cloudscape in the Orion Molecular Cloud Complex (OMC). These three new images from NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope were taken as part of an effort to learn more about the envelopes of gas and dust surrounding protostars, as well as the outflow cavities where stellar winds and jets from developing stars have carved out the surrounding gas and dust.
The scientists used these Hubble observations as part of a larger study to study protostellar envelopes, or the gas and dust around the developing star. The researchers found no evidence that the flow cavities grew as the protostar went through the final stages of star formation. They also found that the decrease in mass accretion on protostars over time and the low rate of star formation in cold molecular clouds cannot be explained by the gradual shedding of envelopes.
The WTO is located in the “sword” of the constellation Orion, approximately 1,300 light years away.
This Hubble image shows a small group of young stars amid molecular clouds of gas and dust. Near the center of the image, hidden behind dusty clouds, is the protostar HOPS 181. The long, curved arc at the top left of the image is shaped by the flow of material from the protostar, likely from jets of particles projected at high speed from the protostar’s magnetic poles. Light from nearby stars reflects and is scattered by the dust grains that fill the image, giving the area its soft glow.
The bright star in the lower right quadrant called CVSO 188 may look like the diva in this image, but HOPS 310, located just left of center behind the dust, is the real hidden star. This protostar is responsible for the large, bright-walled cavity that was carved out of the surrounding gas and dust cloud by its stellar jets and winds. Diagonally to the upper right is one of the protostar’s bipolar jets. These jets are made up of particles launched at high speed from the magnetic poles of the protostar. Some background galaxies are visible at the top right of the image.
The bright protostar on the left in this Hubble image is located in Orion’s molecular clouds. Its stellar winds – fast-flowing ejected particles stimulated by the star’s magnetic field – carved out a large cavity in the surrounding cloud. At the top right, background stars speckle the image.
New images added every day between January 12 and 17, 2026! Follow @NASAHubble on social media for the latest Hubble images and news, and check out Hubble’s Star Building Zones for more images of young stellar objects.
Explore more
Media contact:
Claire Andreoli
from NASA Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Maryland
claire.andreoli@nasa.gov
