In this study, the characteristics of gas atomized Mg-3wt%Al-1wt%Zn-1wt%MM alloy powders under vacuum condition were investigated. In spite of the low fluidity and easy oxidation of the molten magnesium, the spherical powders could be successfully produced by using a modified three pieces nozzle attached to the gas atomization unit. It was found that most of the solidified powders less than 50$mu$m in diameter were single crystal and the solidified structure showed a typical dendritic morphology due to supercooling prior to nucleation. The secondary dendrite arm spacing decreased as the size of powders decreased. The Mg-Al-Ce intermetallic compounds with chemically stable phase were found in the interdendritic regions of $alpha$-Mg. It is considered that formation of the chemically stable phase may possibly affect to improve the corrosion resistance. Therefore, it is expected that the materials formed of these Mg-Al-Zn-MM alloy powders shows better mechanical properties and corrosion resistance due to the structural refinement.