{"id":69425,"date":"2025-09-17T10:45:07","date_gmt":"2025-09-17T10:45:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/69425\/"},"modified":"2025-09-17T10:45:07","modified_gmt":"2025-09-17T10:45:07","slug":"astronomers-glimpse-growth-of-baby-planet-shrouded-in-dust","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/69425\/","title":{"rendered":"Astronomers glimpse growth of baby planet shrouded in dust"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><img fetchpriority=\"high\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/AB-Aurigae-b-protoplanet-VLT-Astrobiology-Center-T-Currie-et-al-Sep-2-2025.jpg\" alt=\"Growth of baby planet: Blue solid circle with yellow star in the center. Pixelated white patches are around the edge of the circle.\" width=\"800\" height=\"798\" class=\"size-full wp-image-521638\"  \/>Image from the Very Large Telescope (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.eso.org\/public\/teles-instr\/paranal-observatory\/vlt\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">VLT<\/a>) in Chile showing the growth of baby planet AB Aurigae b (bright spot near the bottom) in its <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/birthplaces-of-new-planets-protoplanetary-disks-lupus-alma\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">protoplanetary disk<\/a>. Image via T. Currie et al.\/ <a href=\"https:\/\/iopscience.iop.org\/article\/10.3847\/2041-8213\/adf7a0#apjladf7a0f1\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">The Astrophysical Journal Letters<\/a> (<a href=\"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">CC BY 4.0<\/a>).<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Baby planets, or protoplanets,<\/strong> form in protoplanetary disks of dust and gas around young stars. Astronomers have found most of them in gaps within the disks.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Astronomers have re-observed the protoplanet named AB Aurigae b,<\/strong> about 500 light-years away. New data provided clues about how it is gathering material and growing.<\/li>\n<li><strong>AB Aurigae b is embedded within the disk itself,<\/strong> instead of in a gap. This is the first time such a protoplanet has been observed growing as it is still shrouded in dust and gas.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Active growth of baby planet<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Protoplanet\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Protoplanets<\/a> are baby planets still in the process of forming in stars\u2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/birthplaces-of-new-planets-protoplanetary-disks-lupus-alma\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">protoplanetary disks<\/a> of dust and gas. Astronomers have found many such protoplanets around young stars. But on September 5, 2025, an international team of astronomers <a href=\"https:\/\/www.abc-nins.jp\/en\/a-glimpse-of-a-planet-in-formation-ab-aurigae-b-detected-in-h-alpha-light\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">said<\/a> that, for the first time, it has directly glimpsed evidence of a growing protoplanet \u2013 AB Aurigae b \u2013 while it\u2019s still shrouded in dust and gas in its disk. Using the Very Large Telescope (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.eso.org\/public\/teles-instr\/paranal-observatory\/vlt\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">VLT<\/a>) in Chile, the team detected a signature of hydrogen from the protoplanet that provided the clues.<\/p>\n<p>Unlike most protoplanets found so far, this one is still embedded within the dusty material of the disk instead of being in a cleared-out gap in the disk. AB Aurigae b is about <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/astronomy-essentials\/how-far-is-a-light-year\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">500 light-years<\/a> away from us.<\/p>\n<p>The new study includes researchers from the Astrobiology Center (ABC) in Japan, the University of Tokyo, the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ), Kogakuin University, the University of Texas at San Antonio and Peking University in China.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/subarutelescope.org\/staff\/currie\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Thayne Currie<\/a>, at the University of Texas at San Antonio and the Subaru Telescope at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan, is the lead author of the new study.<\/p>\n<p>The researchers <a href=\"https:\/\/iopscience.iop.org\/article\/10.3847\/2041-8213\/adf7a0\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">published<\/a> their <a href=\"https:\/\/iopscience.iop.org\/journal\/2041-8205\/page\/about-the-journal#peer\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">peer-reviewed<\/a> findings in The Astrophysical Journal Letters on September 2, 2025.<\/p>\n<blockquote class=\"bluesky-embed\" data-bluesky-uri=\"at:\/\/did:plc:7t7to574jpbpqga7a6ypugqs\/app.bsky.feed.post\/3lxdxxapttc23\" data-bluesky-cid=\"bafyreictpu2yn5udiy4l2bgwmoo7plfiy7blsr6ysmbbuotcu4jwc4z4dm\">\n<p lang=\"en\">And here we are \u2026 our paper reporting the detection of the AB Aurigae b protoplanet with VLT\/MUSE spectroscopy!arxiv.org\/abs\/2508.18351<\/p>\n<p>\u2014 <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/did:plc:7t7to574jpbpqga7a6ypugqs?ref_src=embed\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">Thayne Currie ?? (@astrothayne.bsky.social)<\/a> <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/did:plc:7t7to574jpbpqga7a6ypugqs\/post\/3lxdxxapttc23?ref_src=embed\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">2025-08-27T02:23:45.798Z<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/Thayne-Currie-University-of-Texas-San-Antonio-Subaru-Telescope-National-Astronomical-Observatory-of-.jpeg\" alt=\"Man with wide-brimmed hat crouching down with his golden retriever dog, with the ocean in the background.\" width=\"500\" height=\"500\" class=\"size-full wp-image-521717\"  \/><a href=\"https:\/\/subarutelescope.org\/staff\/currie\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Thayne Currie<\/a> at the University of Texas at San Antonio and the Subaru Telescope at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan is the lead author of the new study about AB Aurigae b. Image via <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/astrothayne.bsky.social\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Bluesky<\/a>.<br \/>\nHydrogen emission provides hint<\/p>\n<p>The researchers used the Multi Unit Spectroscopic Explorer (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.eso.org\/sci\/facilities\/develop\/instruments\/muse.html\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">MUSE<\/a>) spectrograph on the Very Large Telescope for their observations. The detected a <a href=\"https:\/\/science.nasa.gov\/mission\/webb\/science-overview\/science-explainers\/spectroscopy-101-how-absorption-and-emission-spectra-work\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">hydrogen emission<\/a> coming from AB Aurigae b. That emission is evidence for material from the protoplanetary disk falling onto the protoplanet. MUSE can detect extended structures of gas or dust, such as the hydrogen emission.<\/p>\n<p>Astronomers have detected hydrogen emissions in protoplanetary disks before. But those have been associated with the protoplanets <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/1st-confirmed-image-newborn-planet\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">PDS 70 b<\/a> and <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nsf.gov\/news\/astronomers-confirm-existence-two-giant-newborn\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">PDS 70 c<\/a> that are now residing in cleared-out gaps in the disk. In this case, however, the protoplanet is still embedded within the gas and dust of the disk itself and hasn\u2019t created a gap yet. This means it is also one of the youngest protoplanets ever found so far. In 2021, astronomers even found a possible <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/moon-forming-disk-pds-70c-alma\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">moon-forming disk<\/a> around PDS 70 c!<\/p>\n<p>The researchers <a href=\"https:\/\/iopscience.iop.org\/article\/10.3847\/2041-8213\/adf7a0\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">note<\/a> in the paper that while an alternative explanation other than material accreting onto the protoplanet is possible, they consider it to be less likely. Currie <a href=\"https:\/\/bsky.app\/profile\/astrothayne.bsky.social\/post\/3lxdy3st75s23\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">said<\/a> on Bluesky:<\/p>\n<blockquote>\n<p>So cased closed, right? AB Aur b = embedded but accreting protoplanet. MUSE shuts the door on mystery about the system \u2026<\/p>\n<p>NOPE. Evidence favors AB Aur b as a site of active planet formation. But \u2018maybe\u2019 the MUSE detection itself is from \u2018something else.\u2019 We \u2018mused\u2019 (get it?) about some contrived scenarios \u2026 \u2018Possible?\u2019 AB Aurigae is just. plain. WEIRD.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/protoplanetary-disk-artist-illustration-ALMA-ESO-November-6-2014.jpg\" alt=\"Large bright reddish disk of gas and dust around a bright white star. The disk has darker concentric rings in it.\" width=\"800\" height=\"533\" class=\"size-full wp-image-506514\"  \/><a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.eso.org\/images\/large\/eso1436f.jpg\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">View larger<\/a>. | Artist\u2019s illustration of a large protoplanetary disk. The gaps are where new planets are forming. Image via <a href=\"https:\/\/www.eso.org\/public\/images\/eso1436f\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">ESO<\/a>\/ L. Cal\u00e7ada.<br \/>\nAB Aurigae b and planetary formation<\/p>\n<p>Although AB Aurigae b is still a baby planet, it is huge, about four to nine times the mass of Jupiter. It orbits far away from its young star, at 93 astronomical units (<a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/what-is-the-astronomical-unit\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">AU<\/a>). For comparison, Earth\u2019s orbit is 1 AU. And even Neptune\u2019s average distance is only 30 AU.<\/p>\n<p>Interestingly, standard planetary formation models don\u2019t fully explain how such a large planet would form so far from its star. However, the <a href=\"https:\/\/eaps.mit.edu\/news-impact\/3-questions-evidence-for-planetary-formation-through-gravitational-instability\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">gravitational instability hypothesis<\/a> might be able to explain it. In this scenario, the disk itself becomes gravitationally unstable and collapses to form the planet. That\u2019s unlike core accretion, which occurs when grains of dust in the disk collect and grow to form a planetary core.<\/p>\n<p>Bottom line: Using the Very Large Telescope, astronomers have seen the growth of baby planet AB Aurigae b. It is still surrounded by dust in its protoplanetary disk.<\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/iopscience.iop.org\/article\/10.3847\/2041-8213\/adf7a0\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Source: VLT\/MUSE Detection of the AB Aurigae b Protoplanet with H alpha Spectroscopy<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.abc-nins.jp\/en\/a-glimpse-of-a-planet-in-formation-ab-aurigae-b-detected-in-h-alpha-light\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Via Astrobiology Center<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/todays-image\/a-baby-planet-spotted-is-the-dusty-disk-around-a-star\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Read more: Baby planet caught carving a path in its star\u2019s dusty disk<\/a><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/space\/planet-forming-disk-circumstellar-disk-hh-1177-large-magellanic-cloud-alma\/\" rel=\"noopener nofollow\" target=\"_blank\">Read more: 1st planet-forming disk found in another galaxy<\/a><\/p>\n<p>                    Paul Scott Anderson<br \/>\n                    <a href=\"https:\/\/earthsky.org\/author\/paul-scott-anderson\/\" class=\"post-author-link\" rel=\"nofollow noopener\" target=\"_blank\">View Articles<\/a><\/p>\n<p>                    About the Author:<\/p>\n<p>Paul Scott Anderson has had a passion for space exploration that began when he was a child when he watched Carl Sagan\u2019s Cosmos. He studied English, writing, art and computer\/publication design in high school and college. He later started his blog The Meridiani Journal in 2005, which was later renamed Planetaria. He also later started the blog Fermi Paradoxica, about the search for life elsewhere in the universe.&#13;<br \/>\n&#13;<br \/>\nWhile interested in all aspects of space exploration, his primary passion is planetary science and SETI. In 2011, he started writing about space on a freelance basis with Universe Today. He has also written for SpaceFlight Insider and AmericaSpace and has also been published in The Mars Quarterly. He also did some supplementary writing for the iOS app Exoplanet.&#13;<br \/>\n&#13;<br \/>\nHe has been writing for EarthSky since 2018, and also assists with proofing and social media.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Image from the Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile showing the growth of baby planet AB Aurigae b&hellip;\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":69426,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[77],"tags":[48231,18,48230,19,17,22914,133,451,23297],"class_list":{"0":"post-69425","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-science","8":"tag-ab-aurigae-b","9":"tag-eire","10":"tag-growth-of-baby-planet","11":"tag-ie","12":"tag-ireland","13":"tag-protoplanetary-disk","14":"tag-science","15":"tag-space","16":"tag-very-large-telescope"},"share_on_mastodon":{"url":"","error":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69425","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=69425"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/69425\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/69426"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=69425"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=69425"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=69425"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}