A. Fuente

When a young star ejects jets of gas, they slam into the surrounding cloud like a fist into a pillow. At the impact site, the gas is compressed and heated — creating a shock wave. In this hot zone, atoms and simple molecules collide and assemble into larger compounds, known as complex organic molecules.

Massive stars are cosmic titans, living under the sign of indomitable energy. When such a star enters the B[e] supergiant phase, its radiation is so powerful that it would seemingly pulverize any molecule into atoms. The spectral lines, once systematized by Johann Balmer, blaze here with particular fury.