The star is surrounded by a planet-forming disk of cloud of gas and dust leftover from when the star was born. A team of researchers used ALMA to measure chemical signals in the planet-forming disk, and they detected gaseous water, or water vapor. Typically, water molecules are made of one oxygen atom combined with two hydrogen atoms. The research team studied a variation called heavy water, detected in V883 Orionis’ disk? The water we’re used to and heavy water both form in different scenarios, and their ratios can be used by researchers to trace when and where the water molecules formed.

Source: The Star March 08, 2023 22:42 UTC