Astronomers Make "Live" Observation of a Nearby Protoplanetary Disk's Rotation
Astronomers have directly observed the rotation of a protoplanetary disk around the young star AB Aurigae using the SPHERE instrument. The observations reveal rotational anomalies that suggest the presence of giant planets currently forming within the disk.
Why it matters
This discovery provides critical empirical evidence for the complex and still-debated process of planetary formation in distant star systems.
Ever since the first protoplanetary disk was discovered in 1984 around the star Beta Pictoris, these objects have presented astronomers with laboratories to study the births and evolution of worlds around distant stars. A team at France's National Center for Scientific Research (CNRS) and the University of Bordeaux, made a recent breakthrough in understanding these planetary birthplaces when they directly observed the rotation of a protoplanetary disk around the young star AB Aurigae.
The article reports on scientific findings using objective, descriptive language without political or social framing.
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