Not So Lonely First Stars

摘要

How did the first stars in our universe form and evolve? Theoretical calculations have suggested that early stars were mostly solitary, with some occasionally forming binary systems. Clark et al. (p. 1040, published online 3 February) present results from numerical simulations that show that primordial stars were surrounded by gravitationally unstable disks that fragmented into multiple clumps. Although the simulations do not show how the primordial disks evolved beyond this stage, based on our knowledge of present-day star formation, it is reasonable to think that the process could have led to binary or multiple star systems and thus to a much less solitary life for the universe's first stars.