Webb telescope spots infant planets in different stages of development
An artist's rendition of the sun-like star YSES-1 in the center, with the planet YSES-1 b and its dusty circumplanetary disk (right) and the planet YSES-1 c with silicate clouds in its atmosphere (left), is seen in this handout image obtained by Reuters on June 11, 2025. Ellis Bogat/Handout via REUTERS/Illustration
WASHINGTON - The James Webb Space Telescope has observed two large planets at different stages of infancy - one with an atmosphere brimming with dusty clouds and the other encircled by a disk of material - orbiting a young sun-like star in a discovery that illustrates the complex nature of how planetary systems develop.
The two gas giant planets, both more massive than our solar system's largest planet Jupiter, were directly imaged by Webb in a planetary system located in the Milky Way galaxy about 310 light years from Earth in the direction of the constellation Musca. A light-year is the distance light travels in a year, 5.9 trillion miles (9.5 trillion km).
Astronomers have detected more than 5,900 planets beyond our solar system - called exoplanets - since the 1990s, with less than 2% of these directly imaged like these two. It is rare to find exoplanets in their early developmental stages.
The birth of a planetary system begins with a large cloud of gas and dust - called a molecular cloud - that collapses under its own gravity to form a central star. Leftover material spinning around the star in what is called a protoplanetary disk forms planets.
This planetary system was observed by Webb very early in its developmental history. The star, named YSES-1, is about the same mass as the sun. The two planets orbit a long distance from the star, each probably needing thousands of years to complete a single orbit.
While the sun is roughly 4.5 billion years old, this star is approximately 16 million years old, a veritable newborn. The researchers were surprised to find that the two neonatal planets observed by Webb appeared to be at different stages of development.
The innermost of the two has a mass about 14 times greater than Jupiter and orbits the star at a distance 160 times greater than Earth orbits the sun and more than five times as far as our solar system's outermost planet Neptune.
The planet is surrounded by a disk of small-grained dust, a state one might expect in a very early stage of formation when it is still coalescing, or perhaps if there has been a collision of some kind or a moon is in the process of taking shape. Webb spotted water and carbon monoxide in its atmosphere.
The outermost planet has a mass about six times greater than that of Jupiter and orbits the star at 320 times the distance of Earth to the sun. Its atmosphere is loaded with silicate clouds, differing from our solar system's gas giants. Webb also detected methane, water, carbon monoxide and carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. It has no disk of material around it.
The puzzling combination of traits presented by these two planets in the same system illustrates "the complex landscape that is planet formation and shows how much we truly don't know about how planetary systems came to be, including our own," said astrophysicist Kielan Hoch of the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, who led the study published this week in the journal Nature.
"Theoretically, the planets should be forming around the same time, as planet formation happens fairly quickly, within about one million years," Hoch said.
A real mystery is the location where the planets formed, Hoch added, noting that their orbital distance from the host star is greater than would be expected if they formed in the protoplanetary disk.
"Furthermore, why one planet still retains material around it and one has distinct silicate clouds remains a big question. Do we expect all giant planets to form the same way and look the same if they formed in the same environment? These are questions we have been investigating for ages to place the formation of our own solar system into context," Hoch said.
In addition to amassing a trove of discoveries about the early universe since becoming operational in 2022, Webb has made a major contribution to the study of exoplanets with its observations at near- and mid-infrared wavelengths.
"Webb is revealing all sorts of atmospheric physics and chemistry happening in exoplanets that we didn't know before, and is currently challenging every atmospheric model we used pre-Webb," Hoch said. — Reuters
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
GMA Network
6 hours ago
- GMA Network
PH, Japan space agencies to team up to help Filipinos — Marcos
DIWATA-1, the Philippines' first micro satellite for multi spectral high precision earth observation, is seen at the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) during a media tour at JAXA Tsukuba Space Center in Tsukuba, north of Tokyo, Japan. Reuters/Yuya Shino The Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA) and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) are set to collaborate on initiatives that will help Filipinos in the face of climate challenges and disasters, President Ferdinand "Bongbong" Marcos said Saturday. The President announced the development in a statement on Instagram, saying the two agencies will work to maximize space technology that would allow better tracking of weather disturbances and faster disaster response. "We're working with the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), together with our very own Philippine Space Agency (PhilSA), to use space technology that helps protect and improve the lives of Filipinos," Marcos said. "With better satellites, we can track typhoons and respond to disasters more quickly, help our farmers plan smarter, and keep our communities safer," the President added. Marcos met with JAXA executives as he wrapped up business meetings in Osaka, Japan on Friday, the Presidential Communications Office (PCO) said. He is currently on a four-day working visit to Japan from June 19 to 22. JAXA has been a partner of the Philippines in space science, technology and applications programs, through the Department of Science and Technology (DOST). The DOST, for its part, has partnered with Japanese universities in the development and launch of the Philippines' first microsatellites DIWATA-1 and DIWATA-2, nanosatellites MAYA-1 and MAYA-2, and the first nanosatellites built by Philippine universities. Established in 2003, JAXA is Japan's national space agency responsible for research, development and the utilization of space and aeronautics. JAXA became a national research and development (R&D) agency in April 2015. It is involved in different undertakings to promote R&D in aerospace, with a focus on international cooperation, public relations, and collaboration with industries and educational institutions. — VDV, GMA Integrated News
GMA Network
2 days ago
- GMA Network
SpaceX Starship rocket explodes in setback to Musk's Mars mission
Flames rise as a SpaceX rocket explodes in Brownsville, Texas, June 18, 2025, in this screengrab obtained from a social media video. TheRocketFuture via X/ via REUTERS SpaceX's massive Starship spacecraft exploded into a dramatic fireball during testing in Texas late on Wednesday, the latest in a series of setbacks for billionaire Elon Musk's Mars rocket program. The explosion occurred around 11 p.m. local time while Starship was on a test stand at its Brownsville, Texas Starbase while preparing for the tenth test flight, SpaceX said in a post on Musk's social-media platform X. The company attributed it to a "major anomaly,' and said all personnel were safe. 'Preliminary data suggests that a nitrogen COPV in the payload bay failed below its proof pressure,' Musk said in a post on X, in a reference to a nitrogen gas storage unit known as a Composite Overwrapped Pressure Vessel. 'If further investigation confirms that this is what happened, it is the first time ever for this design,' he continued. SpaceX didn't immediately respond to a request for further comment. The Starship rocket appeared to experience at least two explosions in quick succession, lighting up the night sky and sending debris flying, according to video capturing the moment it exploded. The 400-foot (122-meter) tall Starship rocket system is at the core of Musk's goal of sending humans to Mars. But it has been beset by a string of failures this year. In late May, SpaceX's Starship rocket spun out of control about halfway through a flight without achieving some of its most important testing goals. The Starship lifted off from SpaceX's Starbase, Texas, launch site, flying beyond the point of two previous explosive attempts earlier this year that sent debris streaking over Caribbean islands and forced dozens of airliners to divert course. Two months earlier, the spacecraft exploded in space minutes after lifting off from Texas, prompting the US Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to halt air traffic in parts of Florida. Videos on social media showed fiery debris streaking through the dusk skies near south Florida and the Bahamas after Starship broke up in space shortly after it began to spin uncontrollably with its engines cut off, a SpaceX live stream of the mission showed. Musk called that explosion "a minor setback." The FAA said earlier this month that it had closed an agency-required investigation into the mishap, citing the probable cause as a hardware failure in one of the engines. SpaceX identified eight corrective actions to prevent a recurrence and the FAA said it verified SpaceX implemented those prior to the late May Starship mission. In January, a Starship rocket broke up in space minutes after launching from Texas, raining debris over Caribbean islands and causing minor damage to a car in the Turks and Caicos Islands. — Reuters XML
GMA Network
4 days ago
- GMA Network
‘Jurassic World: Rebirth' brings fans back to dangerous dinosaur realm
LONDON —Scarlett Johansson's role in "Jurassic World: Rebirth" made her recall her earliest memories of the dinosaur film franchise. The "Black Widow" actor recalled seeing the first "Jurassic Park" film at the movie theater when she was 10 years old. 'It imprinted on me very deeply,' she told Reuters at the London premiere at Odeon Luxe Leicester Square. 'For the next three decades, I was like, I would have done anything to be in a Jurassic movie in any capacity,' she added. The franchise, created by Michael Crichton, has spawned several films, merchandising deals and video games. "Jurassic World: Rebirth," directed by Gareth Edwards, follows a team of specialists that embarks on an expedition to a forbidden island, home to a research facility for the original 'Jurassic Park'. The specialists, played by Johansson and "Bridgerton" actor Jonathan Bailey, must obtain DNA samples from three dinosaurs to achieve a life-saving medical breakthrough. The Universal Pictures film arrives in theaters on July 2. For Rupert Friend, this installment in the franchise is exhilarating. 'I love adventure. I love being taken on a ride where you don't know what's going to happen. I love the unknown. I love risk,' he said. For well-known science fiction director, Edwards, the pressure for the film to succeed did not hit until he arrived at the premiere. 'It's all front and centre here. It feels a bit weird to be honest. I can't quite get my head around it,' the "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story" director added.—Reuters
