Solar scientists have discovered the formation of a new solar system for the first time in history.
In a groundbreaking discovery, an international team of astronomers has observed the earliest stage of planet formation ever, in a distant system around a baby star named HOPS-315. This system, located approximately 1,300 light-years away, resembles the Sun in its early stages, surrounded by a swirling disc of gas and dust - the typical environment from which planets form.
Using data from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST), scientists detected silicon monoxide (SiO) both in gaseous form and as part of crystallizing minerals within the disc around HOPS-315. This discovery suggests that the hot mineral grains, which are the very first solid components or "seeds" of planets, are just beginning to solidify.
Professor Melissa McClure, who led the study, stated that the first observed minerals will form 'pebbles', rocky chunks about the size of a thumbnail. These asteroid-like bodies can collide and form the embryos of planets, then full-size rocky planets, and even the cores of planets like Jupiter.
This marks the earliest stage of planet formation ever observed beyond our Solar System. It provides a direct analogy to our own planetary system’s origins, where similar crystalline minerals formed and later combined to create planetesimals, the kilometer-sized building blocks of planets like Earth and Jupiter.
The discovery allows researchers to understand what to look for in finding other nascent systems and opens a unique window into the "baby solar system" stage, enhancing insights into the processes that shaped our Solar System’s birth.
Professor Merel van 't Hoff, a co-author of the study, compared the observation to a researcher studying human evolution who, for the first time, sees a baby. The discovery offers a glimpse of what our own Solar System might have looked like shortly after the Sun first flickered into life.
The team plans to continue observing HOPS-315 while searching for other systems in the earliest stages of planetary evolution. The current understanding of the earliest stages of planet formation, as observed around the baby star HOPS-315, is that astronomers have for the first time directly witnessed the initial condensation of hot mineral crystals—specifically those containing silicon monoxide (SiO)—within the protoplanetary disc around a young star. This process marks the very beginning of planet-building outside our own Solar System.
[1] BBC News, "Scientists witness the earliest stages of planet formation beyond our Solar System", URL [2] The Guardian, "Scientists witness the earliest stages of planet formation", URL [3] Science Daily, "Scientists witness the earliest stages of planet formation", URL [4] Phys.org, "Scientists witness the earliest stages of planet formation", URL
- The international team of astronomers' discovery of the earliest stage of planet formation, in the system around the baby star HOPS-315, provides a unique window into the initial stages of planet-building outside our Solar System.
- In the process of observing HOPS-315, the team directly witnessed the initial condensation of hot mineral crystals, specifically containing silicon monoxide (SiO), within the protoplanetary disc around a young star.
- This groundbreaking observation enhances insights into the processes that shaped our Solar System’s birth and opens a new avenue for researchers to find other nascent systems in the earliest stages of planetary evolution.
- By comparing the observed system to our own planetary system's origins, scientists can gain a deeper understanding of the evolution of planets, including Earth and Jupiter, and the role that crystalline minerals play in planetary formation.
