{"id":3562,"date":"2025-12-24T06:35:17","date_gmt":"2025-12-24T06:35:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/terrarara.com.br\/en\/?page_id=3562"},"modified":"2025-12-24T06:35:17","modified_gmt":"2025-12-24T06:35:17","slug":"hubble-revela-o-maior-e-mais-caotico-bercario-de-planetas-ja-observado","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/terrarara.com.br\/en\/?page_id=3562","title":{"rendered":"Hubble reveals the largest and most chaotic planet nursery ever observed"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This Hubble Space Telescope image shows the largest planet-forming disk ever observed around a young star. It spans nearly 400 billion miles – 40 times the diameter of our solar system. Image: NASA, ESA, STScI, Kristina Monsch (CfA); Image Processing: Joseph DePasquale (STScI)<\/figcaption><\/figure><\/div>
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\r\n\t#Exoplanets<\/a><\/p>

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\r\n\tNASA’s Hubble Space Telescope has captured stunning images of the largest protoplanetary disk ever recorded around a young star, revealing a surprisingly turbulent and chaotic environment where planets may be being born<\/strong><\/p>

For the first time in visible light, Hubble showed that this disk, called IRAS 23077+6707 and affectionately nicknamed “Dracula’s Chivito,” features filaments of material that extend much higher and lower than expected, and asymmetrically, appearing more pronounced only on one side.<\/p>

\r\nThese findings, published in The Astrophysical Journal, represent a significant milestone for Hubble and help us understand how planets form under extreme conditions.\r\n<\/p>

\r\nLocated about a thousand light-years from Earth, this gigantic disk is almost 400 billion kilometers in diameter, equivalent to 40 times the size of our Solar System up to the edge of the Kuiper Belt.<\/p>

\r\nIt completely hides the young star at its center, which may be a massive, hot star or even a pair of stars.<\/p>

\r\nNot only is it the largest known planet-forming disk, but also one of the most peculiar, with upper layers full of wispy strands of dust and gas that indicate intense activity.\r\n<\/p>

\r\nThe research leader, Kristina Monsch, from the Harvard & Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics, explained that the level of detail observed is rare and shows that planet nurseries may be much more active and disordered than we imagined.<\/p>

\r\nViewed almost sideways, like a hamburger with a dark strip in the middle and bright layers above and below, the structure allows for the study of sub-details in visible light with unprecedented precision.<\/p>

\r\nThe nickname “Dracula’s Chivito” arose playfully, mixing the Transylvanian origin of one researcher with the typical Uruguayan dish of another, since the disk resembles a sandwich.\r\n<\/p>

\r\nAll planetary systems are born from disks like this, made of gas and dust around newly formed stars.<\/p>

\r\nOver time, the gas is absorbed by the star, and planets emerge from the remaining material.<\/p>

\r\nIn this case, the disk has an estimated mass between 10 and 30 times that of Jupiter, meaning enough material to create several giant gas planets.<\/p>

\r\nIt may be an enlarged version of our own Solar System in its early days, offering valuable clues about processes that occur in massive environments.\r\n<\/p>

\r\nKristina Monsch highlighted that, in theory, this disk could harbor a vast planetary system, although planet formation there may be different due to size and turbulence.<\/p>

\r\nThere are still more questions than answers, but these images open a unique new laboratory for studying how planets are born under varying conditions.<\/p>

\r\nCo-author Joshua Bennett Lovell was impressed by the asymmetry, saying that Hubble gives us a front-row seat to observing the chaotic processes that shape disks while building new planets, something we still don’t fully understand.\r\n<\/p>

\r\nThese observations show that planetary formation can be influenced by dynamic interactions, such as the recent influx of dust and gas or environmental effects, making extreme environments like this fascinating for astronomy.<\/p>

\r\nHubble continues to surprise, revealing that the universe is full of turbulent surprises when it comes to creating new worlds.

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Published in 12\/24\/2025 06h35<\/em><\/p>\r\n

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Portuguese version<\/a><\/em><\/p>\r\n

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Text adapted by AI (Grok) and translated via Google API in the English version. Images from public image libraries or credits in the caption. Information about DOI, author and institution can be found in the body of the article.<\/p>\r\n\t\t

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