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last mo.

Telescopes Witness Key Stages of Planet Formation in Three Young Star Systems

These multi-instrument observations deliver direct evidence of protoplanets sculpting disks, fragments emerging via gravitational instability, the initial condensation of refractory minerals in developing systems.

Astronomers believe the spiral disk in this photograph may be evidence of a planet forming around the young star HD 135344B. The location of this potential planet is indicated with a white circle. The central black circle corresponds to a coronagraph — a device that blocks the star's light to reveal details around it.
Image
Image
Image Credit: ESO/ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/Weber et al.

Overview

  • VLT’s ERIS instrument captured a Jupiter-sized protoplanet candidate at the base of a spiral arm in HD 135344B’s disk, marking the first time a forming planet has been imaged carving such structures.
  • Follow-up observations across infrared and millimeter wavelengths are under way to confirm the embedded object’s planetary status and refine its orbit at Neptune-like distances.
  • A separate ERIS team identified a compact substellar companion candidate in V960 Mon’s disk, which could represent a planet or brown dwarf forming through gravitational instability.
  • JWST spectroscopy paired with ALMA imaging recorded the ‘t = 0’ moment of high-temperature mineral condensation around HOPS-315, establishing a benchmark for early solid formation.
  • Together these findings validate theoretical models of core accretion, disk fragmentation and refractory solid emergence, offering close analogues to processes that shaped our own Solar System.