Observations with the ALMA radio telescope managed to detect early signs of planet formation. So when should the planet have a birthday?
Image of disks of matter around 19 protostars, including the 4 binary stars observed by ALMA. For a multiple star system, the disks around the primary star and its companion are presented separately (2nd row far right and 3rd row far left). Discs are displayed by evolutionary stage (Discs in the upper left corner are the youngest and in the lower right corner are the oldest). The two oldest disks exhibit a dim ring-slit structure. Credit: ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO), N. Ohashi et al.
Baby planets form in the disk of material that surrounds newborn stars. Generally, the new planet is formed deep protoplanetary disk old one. So what about the young disc?
Mysterious Structure
The protoplanetary disk is not very old. Only a few million years. That means the planets in the system must have formed within those few million years. However, until now astronomers have not been able to determine how long it takes for planets to form in the disk.
From years of observations, astronomers have discovered deeper layers of mysterious structures within the protoplanetary disk. These structures also feature fissures and rings that mark areas where baby planets form.
This discovery made astronomers begin to investigate deeper. They figure out at what stage in the star formation process planets form. To do this, astronomers make observations of the young disk around 19 protobintang which is 650 light years from Earth!
Apparently, this young protoplanetary disk is very different from the older protoplanetary disk, which has undergone evolution. Of the 19 protoplanetary disks, only a few have rift and ring structures. According to astronomers a disk like this is not yet ready to form planets. From the results, it seems that planets formed from 100 thousand years to one million years after the formation of stars.
Cool Facts
By observing the concentration of small gas and dust particles, the ALMA Telescope can photograph areas of planet formation in great detail. Something that had never been successfully done before.
Source: This article is a republished version developed from Indonesian edition of Space Scoop Universe Awareness. The Indonesian edition of Space Scoop is translated by Langitselatan.
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2023-07-18 01:31:32
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