Overview

• New NIRCam and MIRI views combine near- and mid-infrared diagnostics to expose young stars alongside warm, molecule-rich dust in unprecedented detail.
• Portions that appear dark are so densely packed with gas and dust that even Webb cannot see through them, identifying cocoons for very young or future stars.
• Sagittarius B2 accounts for roughly 50% of star formation in the galactic-center region despite containing about 10% of its star-forming gas.
• The reddest zone, Sagittarius B2 North, is revealed with unmatched clarity as one of the most molecularly rich regions known.
• Located a few hundred light-years from Sagittarius A*, the cloud’s newly mapped structure is now under analysis to determine the drivers and timescale of its elevated star production.