In a stunning revelation, astronomers have identified a newborn planet that formed in a mere 3 million years, challenging our understanding of planetary birth. This rapid formation process is a significant departure from Earth's 10 to 20 million-year journey to become a mature planet.
The newly discovered planet, named IRAS 04125+2902 b or TIDYE-1b, is estimated to be 10 to 20 times the mass of Earth, positioning it among the youngest planets ever found outside our solar system. It orbits a young orange dwarf star, which is about 70% the mass of our sun and resides approximately 520 light-years away in the Milky Way galaxy.
Madyson Barber, a graduate student at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and lead author of the study published in Nature, emphasized the significance of this find. \"This discovery confirms that planets can be in a cohesive form within 3 million years, which was previously unclear as Earth took 10 to 20 million years to form,\" she stated.
The planet completes an orbit around its host star every 8.8 days, residing much closer to its star than Mercury does to the sun—about one-fifth the distance. With a diameter 11 times greater than Earth and a density lower than ours, TIDYE-1b's chemical composition remains a mystery.
Scientists believe that TIDYE-1b may have formed farther from its star and migrated inward, a process that presents unique challenges. \"Forming large planets close to the star is difficult because the protoplanetary disk dissipates away from the closest regions rapidly, leaving less material available for planet formation,\" Barber explained.
Detected using the transit method via NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS), this planet marks the youngest-known transiting planet, offering new insights into the early stages of planet formation.
Reference(s):
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