A 16 au Binary in the Class 0 Protostar L1157 MMS

TL;DR

This paper reports the discovery of a close binary protostar within L1157 MMS at 16 au separation, highlighting magnetically-regulated collapse and multiple star formation in a Class 0 protostar.

Contribution

First high-resolution detection of a 16 au binary in L1157 MMS, providing insights into magnetically-influenced star formation processes.

Findings

Binary separation of ~16 au detected

Inner 50 au mass estimated at 0.11 M_sun

Supports magnetically-regulated collapse model

Abstract

We present VLA observations toward the Class 0 protostar L1157 MMS at 6.8 mm and 9 mm with a resolution of ~0.04" (14 au). We detect two sources within L1157 MMS and interpret these sources as a binary protostar with a separation of ~16 au. The material directly surrounding the binary system within the inner 50 au radius of the system has an estimated mass of 0.11 M_sun, calculated from the observed dust emission. We interpret the observed binary system in the context of previous observations of its flattened envelope structure, low rates of envelope rotation from 5000 to 200 au scales, and an ordered, poloidal magnetic field aligned with the outflow. Thus, L1157 MMS is a prototype system for magnetically-regulated collapse and the presence of a compact binary within L1157 MMS demonstrates that multiple star formation can still occur within envelopes that likely have dynamically important magnetic fields.