The research, led by Dr. Naoki Yoshida and published in the journal Science, suggests gravity acted on gases and dark matter to form a protostar with a mass of just 1 percent of Earth's sun.

"This general picture of star formation, and the ability to compare how stellar objects form in different time periods and regions of the universe, will eventually allow investigation into the origins of life and planets," co-author Lars Hernquist of Harvard University said in a statement.