Science Highlight

ALMA archival data of the young stellar object WSB 52 in the ¹²CO(J=2−1) line were reanalysed, and an expanding bubble structure in the vicinity of its protoplanetary disk was identified. The bubble, with a kinetic energy on the order of 10⁴¹ ergs, is centered along the disk’s rotation axis, strongly suggesting that a stellar jet ejected a few hundred years ago initiated its formation. The bubble morphology indicates uniform expansion with partial concavity, providing strong evidence for a bubble–disk collision. Kinematic analysis reveals a shock front near the star, deformation of the disk, and high-velocity components consistent with mass being expelled from the disk. Similar expanding bubbles have been reported around other young stars, but this is the first direct detection of bubble–disk interaction, which was not predicted by theoretical models. This discovery demonstrates that stellar jets can directly impact protoplanetary disks through bubble formation, a process we refer to as the “jet–bubble–disk interaction,” with important implications for the dynamics of star and planet formation. A link to the publication is here.