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Tw Hydrae

All articles tagged with #tw hydrae

astronomy2 years ago•4 min saved

Off-Kilter Exoplanets Discovered Through Mysterious Shadow Pattern.

The Hubble Space Telescope has observed a second shadow moving over the disk of the young red dwarf star system TW Hydrae, indicating the presence of two planets "under construction" in the system. The proto-planets would have to have slightly different orbital planes to cause this double warping. The two forming planets could be lapping each other as they orbit their parent star like two analog clocks running at different speeds. The similarities to the solar system don't end there, as the inclination of the planets relative to the plane of the outer disk is 5 to 7 degrees, which is similar to the orbital inclinations in our planetary system.

via Space.com|

#astronomy #exoplanets #hubble-space-telescope

astronomy2 years ago•4 min saved

Surprising Discoveries in Space: Newborn Planets and Stellar Midwives

Shadows flickering around TW Hydrae, a young star, suggest the presence of three off-kilter disks of material, indicating the formation of multiple baby planets. The disks' gravitational interactions cause them to incline slightly with respect to each other, producing shadows that dim the reaches of the disk more distant from the star. This is consistent with the Solar System's architecture, offering insights into how its orbital inclinations got to be the way they are.

via ScienceAlert|

#astronomy #baby-planets #gravitational-interactions

astronomy2 years ago•6 min saved

Hubble Captures Birth of Planets in Cosmic Shadows

The Hubble Space Telescope has discovered two shadows moving counterclockwise across a gas-and-dust disk encircling the young star TW Hydrae, indicating the presence of two misaligned disks caused by the gravitational pull of two planets in slightly different orbital planes. The disks are proxies for planets that are lapping each other as they whirl around the star, and may be comparable to the range of orbital inclinations inside our solar system. The outer disk that the shadows are falling on may extend as far as several times the radius of our solar system’s Kuiper belt, and may have a curious gap at twice Pluto’s average distance from the Sun, which might be evidence for a third planet in the system.

via SciTechDaily|

#astronomy #gravitational-pull #hubble-space-telescope

science2 years ago•2 min saved

Hubble captures birth of multiple planets around newborn star.

The Hubble Space Telescope has captured images of a young star, TW Hydrae, that suggest the early development of planets. The images show changes in the shadows surrounding the star, which researchers suggest are signs of planets emerging from a disk of dust and gas. The research team suggests that the two planets may be the distance of Jupiter from the Sun, and the inclinations of the disks are comparable to our solar system.

via The Register|

#astronomy #hubble-space-telescope #planet-formation