Researchers Find 'Baby' Planet In Taurus Molecular Clouds

ILLUSTRATION/Newborn Planet/NASA DOK

JAKARTA The Science Team at the University of North Carolina discovered a large 'baby' planet. Reports regarding the discovery of the planet were released in Nature with the title Planet Giants Crossing Protostars.

The planet, named IRAS 04125+2902 b, is categorized as a baby because its age has only reached three million years. Unlike other young planets hidden in debris disks, this planet can actually be seen very clearly by astronomers.

IRAS 04125+2902 b is the youngest planet to be found through the dominant planet detection method. It is not known how the planet's debris disk opened, but the Transit exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS) managed to observe it.

With an estimated mass 10 to 20 times larger than Earth's mass, the planet is in the Taurus Molecular Cloud, a cloud that plays an important role in the formation of new planets and stars.

"This is the youngest known transiting planet. The planet is equivalent to the youngest known planets," said Madyson Barber, one of the researchers in the planet's discovery.

Although the planet's appearance is a very important finding, scientists seem more interested in changing the debris disk on the outside. This suddenly curved Cakram is a great coincidence as well as a mystery.

This disc change may occur due to other objects. However, if you look at it, the orbital angle of the companion star is the same as the orbital angle of the planet and its parent star so that the disk should be more aligned, not sharply stored.

The results of observations so far have not been able to reveal how this disk can be 'rustrated' and whether such discs often occur in the area.

The researchers have also not been able to confirm the original age of IRAS 04125+2902 b.

"We don't really know how long it will take the planet to form. We know that a giant planet should form faster than its disk disappears," said Andrew Mann, a fellow researcher at Barber.

"The weather takes 5 to 10 million years to disappear. So, is the planet formed in 1 million years? 5?"