FU Orionis Star System’s Violent Eruptions Explained After Decades of Speculation
In the serene expanse of the Milky Way, most stars go about their business quietly, but one star refuses to conform to the norm. Enter FU Orionis, a binary system that has been erupting dramatically since 1936, puzzling astronomers with its erratic behavior. Now, after 88 years of speculation, a breakthrough has been made.
Astronomers, led by Antonio Hales of the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, have finally uncovered the secret behind FU Orionis' relentless outbursts. Using observations from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), they have directly imaged a stream of material being devoured by the star – a crucial piece of the puzzle that has eluded scientists for decades.
"This discovery provides the first direct observational evidence of the material fueling...