Possible site of new planet discovered by University of Galway team of scientists
The researchers said the planet is probably a gas giant planet many times the mass of Jupiter.
The method of discovery involved using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile.
With the instrument, the researchers captured images of a distant young star in the form of a scattered near-infrared light that revealed an 'exceptionally structured' disc – demonstrating the probable formation a new planet.
An image of the new planet forming was published by the European Southern Observatory as its image of the week.
Images of the disc showed that it extends to 130 astronomical units from its parent star.
The figure is equivalent to 130 times the distance between Earth and the sun.
It shows a bright ring followed by a gap centred at roughly 50 astronomical units.
The scientific paper speculates on the presence of a planet based on its structure and the rings and spirals observed in the disc.
It also notes some tentative atmospheric emission but the research team said it requires further study to confirm.
Led by Dr Christian Ginski, from the Centre for Astronomy in the School of Natural Sciences at University of Galway, the study was co-authored by four postgraduate students at the university: Chloe Lawlor, Dan McLachlan, Matthew Murphy and Jake Byrne. The wider research team included colleagues in the UK, Germany, Australia, the US, Netherlands, Italy, Chile, France and Japan.
'While our team has now observed close to 100 possible planet-forming discs around nearby stars, this image is something special,' Dr Ginski said.
'One rarely finds a system with both rings and spiral arms in a configuration that almost perfectly fits the predictions of how a forming planet is supposed to shape its parent disc according to theoretical models.
'Detections like this bring us one step closer to understand how planets form in general and how our solar system might have formed in the distant past.'
University of Galway PhD student Ms Lawlor said: 'Working with Dr Christian Ginski on the 2MASS1612 paper has been an incredible experience.
'As an early-career researcher, having the opportunity to contribute to such exciting work has been especially rewarding.
'This work has been the perfect introduction to scientific writing and collaboration, and I'm very grateful for this kick-start to my research career.'
Based on their research findings, Dr Ginski and his team have secured time at the world-leading James Webb Space Telescope observatory in the upcoming observation cycle.
Using the unprecedented sensitivity of the James Webb Telescope, the research team hopes to be able to take an actual image of the young planet.
If planets in the disc are confirmed, it will become a prime laboratory for the study of planet-disc interaction
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
3 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Nasa issues shock update on hidden ‘city killer' asteroid heading towards the Moon in 2032
NASA has upped the odds of a 200ft "city killer" asteroid smashing into the Moon in 2032. Asteroid 2024 YR4 was once feared to be on Advertisement 2 The moon is pockmarked with previous impact craters Credit: Getty 2 Artist's impression of an asteroid Credit: Getty Further calculations showed it will during a flyby in 2032. However, the space rock is now back in the spotlight following a warning from Nasa. YR4 now has an increased chance of hitting the Moon. The asteroid is too far to observe from Earth, so scientists have used the $10billion James Webb Space Telescope (JSWT) as their eye in the sky. Advertisement READ MORE ON NASA Using data from JSWT, a team of scientists from the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory refined predictions of where YR4 will be on 22 December, 2032. The new predictions prompted Nasa to increase the odds of a lunar impact from 3.8 per cent to 4.3 per cent, according to a recent update. The odds of an impact have more than - when Nasa gave it a 1-in-59 chance of hitting our only orbital satellite. "As data comes in, it is normal for the impact probability to evolve," Nasa noted in its Advertisement Most read in Science The US space agency will be able to make more observations about the asteroid's predicted path when during its next flyby of the Sun in 2028. Fortunately, in the event of an impact, there would be minimal consequences for Earth. Terrifying video reveals what the impact of city-killer asteroid 2024YR4 hitting Earth in 2032 might look like "In the small chance that the asteroid were to impact, it would not alter the Moon's orbit," Nasa wrote. It would simply add another pockmark to the lunar landscape, which is plastered with impact craters. Advertisement Any debris kicked up by the impact would likely burn up in Earth's atmosphere - if any of it nears our planet at all. JWST observations suggest that the space rock measures between 174-220 feet in diameter. That is roughly the size of a 10-story building. While the probability remains low - at over 96 per cent chance of a miss - Nasa is closely monitoring the asteroid. Advertisement The James Webb Space Telescope: an overview The James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) is a space-based observatory that is designed to complement and extend the discoveries of the Hubble Space Telescope. It is named after James E. Webb, who was the administrator of Nasa from 1961 to 1968 and played a pivotal role in the Apollo program. JWST is equipped with a 6.5-meter primary mirror, which is significantly larger than Hubble's 2.4-meter mirror, allowing it to observe much fainter objects at greater distances. It operates in the infrared spectrum, which enables it to peer through dust clouds that obscure visible light and to observe the earliest galaxies that formed after the Big Bang. The telescope was launched on 25th December 2021 and is positioned at the second Lagrange point (L2), approximately 1.5 million kilometers from Earth. This location provides a stable environment with minimal interference from Earth's heat and light. JWST's scientific goals include studying the formation of stars and planets, understanding the evolution of galaxies, and investigating the potential for life in other parts of the universe. It is a collaborative project involving Nasa, the European Space Agency (ESA), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).
The Irish Sun
20 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Irish astronomers make exciting discovery of possible giant gas planet multiple times the mass of Jupiter
AN international team of astronomers led by the University of Galway has discovered the likely site of a new planet in formation. And the exciting new find is most likely a gas giant up to a few times the mass of Jupiter. Using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (ESO's VLT) in Chile, the researchers captured spectacular images around a distant young star for the first time in the form of scattered near-infrared light that revealed an exceptionally structured disk. The disk extends out to 130 astronomical units from its parent star - the equivalent to 130 times the distance between It shows a bright ring followed by a gap centered at roughly 50 For comparison, the outermost planet in our solar system, Neptune, has an orbital distance from the Sun of 30 astronomical units. Read more in Tech Inside the disk gap, reminiscent of the outskirts of a hurricane on Earth, a system of spiral arms are visible. Dr Christian Ginski, lecturer at the School of Natural 'One rarely finds a system with both rings and spiral arms in a configuration that almost perfectly fits the predictions of how a forming planet is supposed to shape its parent disk according to theoretical models. "Detections like this bring us one step closer to understand how planets form in general and how our solar system might have formed in the distant past.' Most read in The Irish Sun The study has been published in the international journal Astronomy and Astrophysics. Based on their research findings, Dr Ginski and his team have secured time at the world-leading James Webb Space Telescope observatory in the upcoming observation cycle. First-ever orbital rocket launched from Europe crashes to the ground and explodes moments after take off from Norway Using the sensitivity of the James Webb Space Telescope, the team hopes to be able to take an actual image of the young planet. If planets in the disk are confirmed, it will become a prime laboratory for the study of planet-disk interaction. The wider research team included astronomers in the UK, Germany, Australia, USA, Netherlands, Italy, Chile, France and Japan. 1 An international team of astronomers led by University of Galway has discovered the likely site of a new planet in formation
RTÉ News
a day ago
- RTÉ News
Watch this space: Irish astronomers may have found evolving planet
An international team of astronomers, led by University of Galway, has discovered the likely site of a new planet in formation. It is most likely a giant gas planet up to a few times the mass of Jupiter. Using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (ESO's VLT) in Chile, the researchers captured images around a distant young star for the first time in the form of scattered near-infrared light that revealed an exceptionally structured disk. The study was led by Dr Christian Ginski from the Centre for Astronomy in the School of Natural Sciences at University of Galway and was co-authored by four postgraduate students at the university. The disk extends out to 130 astronomical units from its parent star - the equivalent to 130 times the distance between Earth and the Sun. It shows a bright ring followed by a gap centered at roughly 50 astronomical units. For comparison, the outermost planet in our solar system, Neptune, has an orbital distance from the Sun of 30 astronomical units. Inside the disk gap, reminiscent of the outskirts of a hurricane on Earth, a system of spiral arms are visible. While appearing tiny in the image, the inner part of the planet-forming system measures 40 astronomical units in radius and would swallow all of the planets in our own solar system. Dr Ginski said: "While our team has now observed close to 100 possible planet-forming disks around nearby stars, this image is something special. "One rarely finds a system with both rings and spiral arms in a configuration that almost perfectly fits the predictions of how a forming planet is supposed to shape its parent disk according to theoretical models. "Detections like this bring us one step closer to understand how planets form in general and how our solar system might have formed in the distant past." Based on their research findings, Dr Ginski and his team have secured time at the world leading James Webb Space Telescope observatory in the upcoming observation cycle. Using the sensitivity of the James Webb Telescope, the team hopes to be able to take an actual image of the young planet. If planets in the disk are confirmed, it will become a prime laboratory for the study of planet-disk interaction. The wider research team included astronomers in the UK, Germany, Australia, USA, Netherlands, Italy, Chile, France and Japan.
