In 1990, a total of 15 sources in the Quintuplet region was studied in more detail at several wavelengths, later referred to by Q or GMM (after the authors Glass, Moneti, and Moorwood) numbers. The original five stars were identified as numbers Q1, Q2, Q3, Q4, and Q9, with additional sources Q5 and Q6 identified as part of the same cluster. They were still considered to be protostars reddened by surrounding dust.
