Astronomers have gotten very good at spotting the signs of planet formation around stars. However, to fully grasp planet formation, it’s crucial to examine cases where this process hasn’t begun.
Looking for something and not finding it can be even more difficult than finding it sometimes, but new detailed observations of the young star DG Taurus show that it has a smooth protoplanetary disk without signs of planet formation. This successful non-detection of planet formation may indicate that DG Taurus is on the eve of planet formation.
Protoplanetary Disks and Planet Growth
Planets form in disks of gas and dust, known as protoplanetary disks, around protostars, young stars still in the process of forming. Planet growth is so slow that it’s not possible to watch the evolution as it happens, so astronomers observe many protostars at slightly different stages of planet formation to build up a theoretical understanding.
This time an international research team led by Satoshi Ohashi at the National Astronomical Observatory of Japan (NAOJ) used the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/ace9b9
The study was funded by the Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft, and the European Union.