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At the center of our galaxy‚ the Milky Way‚ there is a turbulent dark cloud called "The Brick". It is dense‚ opaque‚ and full of cold gas‚ and for decades researchers couldn’t explain why a cloud that seems perfect to make stars was showing so little star formation. New observations from JWST have finally provided insights into what’s going on.First of all‚ let’s clarify that despite little star formation‚ there are still 56‚000 stars in The Brick. However‚ there are not as many as you would expect from a molecular cloud with a mass of 60 million suns. There could be many factors that come into play when explaining its inactivity. It might be too young‚ too turbulent‚ or have strong magnetic fields quenching new star formation.Using JWST‚ the team looked at the emission of carbon monoxide through the cloud and discovered that there is a lot of it in the center and it is in the form of ice – a peculiar discovery for certain.“Our observations compellingly demonstrate that ice is very prevalent there‚ to the point that every observation in the future must take it into account‚” Adam Ginsburg‚ an astronomer from the University of Florida‚ said in a statement. “With JWST‚ we're opening new paths to measure molecules in the solid phase (ice)‚ while previously we were limited to looking at gas. This new view gives us a more complete look at where molecules exist and how they are transported.”However‚ ice doesn’t explain why stars are not forming as quickly and as often as expected. In fact‚ it's quite the opposite. Stars only form from cold gas‚ because that’s when it can condense into a denser region. Over a certain threshold‚ that overdensity collapses under gravity and it will eventually become a star. Lots of ice should be a good sign for cool temperatures all around the cloud‚ but the team found quite the opposite.The gas at the center of The Brick is warmer than comparable regions and this is likely a crucial piece of the puzzle that is this molecular cloud. But this is just the beginning; JWST was able to provide incredible new details on a well-known object that has baffled astronomers for decades. These are only the initial findings of extensive observations of The Brick‚ and there is a lot more that the team plans to find out.  “We don't know‚ for example‚ the relative amounts of CO‚ water‚ CO2‚ and complex molecules‚” said Ginsburg. “With spectroscopy‚ we can measure those and get some sense of how chemistry progresses over time in these clouds.”The study is published in The Astrophysical Journal.

The waters surrounding Antarctica are the coldest in the world‚ ranging from a frosty -2°C to a comparatively balmy 10°C (28 to 50°F). That might not sound like an ideal place to make roots‚ and yet life in the Southern Ocean thrives – but how? Antarctic octopuses (Pareledone) might hold some answers‚ with researchers having discovered a key molecular change that allows the creatures to survive even in the coolest of conditions.Enzymes‚ biological catalysts critical to cell function‚ are vulnerable to temperature – they often slow their activity in extreme cold. In determining why Antarctic octopuses can survive in freezing waters‚ enzymes are one of the most logical places to look; the cold reduces the rate of enzyme activity by 30 times‚ and yet the octopuses remain alive and well.An inter-institutional team of researchers focused on one of the most important enzymes in the nervous system – the sodium-potassium ion pump. This protein sits within the cellular membrane‚ pumping sodium ions out of the cell and bringing potassium ions in‚ a process critical to bringing neurons back to “rest” after activity.Previous research from the team had found that in the cold‚ sodium-potassium ion pumps slowed down far less in Antarctic octopuses than in those found in more temperate waters‚ suggesting that there may be molecular differences – aka mutations – in the pumps that have allowed the Antarctic species to function in colder waters.When investigating differences in proteins‚ the key place to look is the amino acid structure – these are the building blocks of proteins. The team examined the amino acid structure of the sodium-potassium ion pump in both Antarctic octopuses and Octopus bimaculatus‚ a temperate-living species.Although the pumps were largely the same‚ there were some differences between the two. To figure out which of these amino acid alterations played a role in adaptation to the cold‚ the researchers did some molecular jiggling around. They transferred the uniquely Antarctic amino acids into the temperate octopus’ pump‚ tested for cold tolerance‚ removed the changes‚ and tested again.Through this process‚ the team discovered 12 mutations that conferred cold tolerance‚ although one change contributed a fair bit more to this than the others – the 314th amino acid in the Pareledone sodium-potassium ion pump‚ which was a leucine.The researchers believe that this change affects how part of the pump moves against the membrane; they think that it could reduce drag‚ which in turn allows the pump to work more quickly. “It makes sense to us” that the interface between the protein and the membrane would be a site for such adaptations‚ said study author Miguel Holmgren in a statement. “Once we have studied more membrane proteins‚ I think we will see more examples of this.”The study is published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.