ALMA is watching a massive binary star system form

Using ALMA, VLA, JWST, and VLT, astronomers observed the protostellar system IRAS 07299-1651, 5,500 light-years from Earth, for nearly 8 years. The pair of massive stars moves in a highly elongated orbit with tilted disks, which is not explained by disk fragmentation and points to core merger.

• System IRAS 07299-1651 is 5,500 light-years from Earth
• Observations ran nearly 8 years with ALMA, VLA, JWST, and VLT
• The pair's orbit is nearly parabolic, with strongly tilted disks
• Over 75% of massive O/B-type stars are in binary systems