NASA’s Webb Observes Immense Stellar Jet on Outskirts of Our Milky Way

September 10, 2025 10:00AM (EDT)Release ID: 2025-131
Gaseous yellow-orange filaments look like a rose seen from the side and tilted slightly from upper left to lower right. Extending from the rose to left and  right are gaseous outflows that appear as red lobes that have an overall shape of tall, narrow triangles with rounded tips. Each red triangle is made up of wavy, irregular lines. Dozens of stars are scattered across the field.

Summary

Young Star Behaves Like a Giant Roman Candle

Way out toward the edge of our Milky Way galaxy, a young star that is still forming is sending out a birth announcement to the universe in the form of a celebratory looking firework. It's not your July 4th type. These seething twin jets of hot gasses are blazing across 8 light-years – twice the distance between our Sun and the nearest star system. Superheated gases falling onto the massive star are blasted back into space along the star’s rotational axis. Powerful magnetic fields confine the jets to narrow beams, like a Star Wars lightsaber. The James Webb Space Telescope witnessed the spectacle in infrared light. The jet is plowing into interstellar dust and gas, creating fascinating details captured only by Webb.

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