Science

ESO observation thought to show the birth of a giant planet

ESO observation thought to show the birth of a giant planet
An artist's impression of the gas giant planet thought to be forming in the orbit of young star HD 100546 (Image:ESO)
An artist's impression of the gas giant planet thought to be forming in the orbit of young star HD 100546 (Image:ESO)
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An artist's impression of the gas giant planet thought to be forming in the orbit of young star HD 100546 (Image:ESO)
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An artist's impression of the gas giant planet thought to be forming in the orbit of young star HD 100546 (Image:ESO)
Images of the gas and dust surrounding HD 100546, taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope (left) and the NACO system on the ESO's VLT (right) (Image:ESO)
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Images of the gas and dust surrounding HD 100546, taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope (left) and the NACO system on the ESO's VLT (right) (Image:ESO)
The NACO image was taken using a special coronagraph that suppresses the light from the star, allowing the region to be observed in greater detail (Image:ESO)
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The NACO image was taken using a special coronagraph that suppresses the light from the star, allowing the region to be observed in greater detail (Image:ESO)
The Hubble Space Telescope image shows a visible light view of the dust surrounding HD 100546 (Image:ESO)
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The Hubble Space Telescope image shows a visible light view of the dust surrounding HD 100546 (Image:ESO)
A chart showing the position of HD 100546 in the southern constellation of Musca (The Fly) (Image:ESO)
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A chart showing the position of HD 100546 in the southern constellation of Musca (The Fly) (Image:ESO)
An image of the sky around HD 100546 created using images from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (Image:ESO)
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An image of the sky around HD 100546 created using images from the Digitized Sky Survey 2 (Image:ESO)
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The European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT) has been used to observe what is thought to be the formation of a gas giant similar to Jupiter. The candidate planet resides within a disk of dust and gas surrounding the young star HD 100546, located 335 light-years away.

The candidate planet lies some 70 times as far from HD 100546 than the distance between the Earth and the Sun. This large distance has made its identification as a forming planet somewhat controversial, as it does not fit with current theories. It is unclear, however, whether the planet may have moved to its current position from one closer to its star.

Since the discovery of the first exoplanet around a sun-like star in 1995, several hundred planetary systems have been identified, leading to a significant growth in the theory of how planets are formed. However, up until now, there has been no direct observation (and therefore, confirmation) of the process. If the VLT's observations are confirmed, then the discovery will significantly aid our understanding of the process, allowing astronomers to test current theories for the first time.

Images of the gas and dust surrounding HD 100546, taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope (left) and the NACO system on the ESO's VLT (right) (Image:ESO)
Images of the gas and dust surrounding HD 100546, taken by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope (left) and the NACO system on the ESO's VLT (right) (Image:ESO)

Sasha Quanz, the leader of the team that made the discovery, commented on the significance of the find, stating that “So far, planet formation has mostly been a topic tackled by computer simulations […] if our discovery is indeed a forming planet, then for the first time scientists will be able to study the planet formation process and the interaction of a forming planet and its natal environment empirically at a very early stage.”

The observation itself was made using a special coronagraph on the NACO adaptive optics instrument on the VLT, which operates at near-infrared wavelengths. Though it is most likely that the observation is that of a planet forming, the results are yet to be corroborated, and further observations are scheduled to take place in order to confirm the discovery.

Other possible explanations could be that the readings are the result of interference from a background source, or that the planet in question is in fact fully formed and has been ejected from its original orbit closer to the star. That said, if the new object is confirmed as the birth of a planet, then it will become a unique and invaluable asset in the ongoing study of the formation process of new planetary systems.

Scroll down for a video fly-through of the environment around the young star HD 100546.

Source: ESO

Flying through the HD 100546 system

View gallery - 6 images
1 comment
1 comment
Threesixty
Great fly-through video. Same as our Jupiter complete with moons.
What happens when we find the answer to the meaning of life? We all die...me, you, the earth, the galaxy, the universe...and we are re-born from the dust.