... Star Atlas . ... Supernova showered Earth with radioactive debris . ... stars . ... Astronomers get rare peek at early stage of star formation . ... Using radio and infrared telescopes, astronomers have obtained a first tantalizing look at a crucial early stage in star formation. The new observations promise to help scientists understand the early stages of a sequence of events through which a giant cloud of gas and dust collapses into dense cores that, in turn, form new stars. ...