Traditionally, planet formation has been described as a “bottom-up” process, as dust grains gradually collect into bigger conglomerations over…
Astronomers Make Highest-Resolution Observations Ever from Earth
The Event Horizon Telescope (EHT) Collaboration has conducted test observations with the highest resolution ever obtained from the surface…
Supermassive Black Hole Appears to Grow Like a Baby Star
How do supermassive black holes get so big? An international team of astronomers, including scientists at the U.S. National Science Foundation National Radio Astronomy Observatory (NSF NRAO) have discovered a powerful, rotating, magnetic wind that they believe is helping a galaxy’s central supermassive black hole to grow.
It’s Twins! Astronomers Discover Parallel Disks and Jets Erupting From a Pair of Young Stars
Most of the Universe is invisible to the human eye. The building blocks of stars are only revealed in…
ALMA Observations Reveal New Insights into Planet Formation in Binary Star Systems
At the 244th meeting of the American Astronomical Society (AAS), researchers unveiled groundbreaking findings from a pioneering high-angular resolution program that sheds new light on the process of planet formation in circumstellar disks around young stars in binary systems. Leveraging the unparalleled capabilities of the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) and near-infrared, component-resolved spectroscopy at the Keck II 10-meter telescope, the study offers a transformative understanding of the conditions that nurture or inhibit planet formation.
Orion’s Erupting Star System Reveals Its Secrets
An unusual group of stars in the Orion constellation have revealed their secrets. FU Orionis, a double star system, first caught astronomers’ attention in 1936 when the central star suddenly became 1,000 times brighter than usual. This behavior, expected from dying stars, had never been seen in a young star like FU Orionis. The strange phenomenon inspired a new classification of stars sharing the same name (FUor stars). FUor stars flare suddenly, erupting in brightness, before dimming again many years later. It is now understood that this brightening is due to the stars taking in energy from their surroundings via gravitational accretion, the main force that shapes stars and planets. However, how and why this happens remained a mystery—until now, thanks to astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA).