The Milky Way may be churning out more stars than previously thought, according to a new estimate of its star formation rate. Gamma rays from aluminium 26, a radioactive isotope that arises primarily from massive stars, reveals that the Milky Way converts four to eight solar masses of interstellar gas and dust into new stars in. The range is two to four times the conventional estimate and corresponds to an annual birth rate in our galaxy of about ten to 20 stars