Origin of the Mass in Massive Star Outflows

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Abstract
The molecular outflows associated with massive star formation regions often contain more mass than the central stars that presumably drive the outflows. This Letter deals with the origin of the mass. It is shown that neither accumulated stellar winds nor entrained interstellar matter in bipolar jets is likely to be able to account for the observed outflow masses. It is proposed here that the outflow masses are the result of infalling matter that has been diverted outward into bipolar jets; some important consequences of this idea are explored.