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| (Courtesy: ALMA/ESO/NAOJ/NRAO) |
Image of HL Tauri taken by the ALMA array of radio telescopes. The ring structure in the disc of gas and dust surrounding the young star probably means that planets have begun to form.
The clearest image yet of planets forming around a star has been unveiled by astronomers working on the ALMA array of radio telescopes in Chile. The image shows a series of concentric rings of material surrounding HL Tauri – a very young star that is only about one million years old.
"When we first saw this image, we were astounded at the spectacular level of detail," says Catherine Vlahakis, ALMA deputy programme scientist. "HL Tauri is no more than a million years old, yet already its disc appears to be full of forming planets. This one image alone will revolutionize theories of planet formation".
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