The James Webb Space Telescope just picked up a super faint, "forbidden" light signal from H3+, an interstellar molecule that scientists have been curious about for decades.
This is the first time anyone has caught this kind of emission in space, and it happened near the Herbig-Haro object HH 168.
The discovery also confirms some old theories about how H3+ changes shape as it spins.
H3+ signals reveal hydrogen shock interactions
H3+ is often called "the molecule that made the Universe" because it's crucial for building organic compounds, basically, the stuff life needs.
JWST detected 26 unique signals from H3+ in Herbig-Haro object HH 168, and another Herbig-Haro object, HH 211, showing how it interacts with hydrogen during intense shock waves when stars are born.