Astronomers spot water vapor in region where planets likely form

Astronomers have found water vapor around a young star within the constellation Taurus, 450 light-years away from Earth.

Hiroshima Fallout May Offer a Glimpse of the Early Solar System

Bits of glass called Hiroshimaites may have formed by processes similar to those that formed the Sun and the planets.

Astronomers Discover Unexpected Structures In Youngest Planetary Disks

How long does planet formation take? Maybe not as long as we thought, according to new research.

Astronomers discover disc around star in anotehr galaxy

 It’s the first time such a disc, identical to those forming planets in our own Milky Way, has ever been found outside our galaxy. 

Webb Prompts New Thinking About Planet Formation

Instruments on NASA's Webb telescope are providing new clues about the time window when planets can form around a young star.

Astronomers discover first step toward planet formation

Solving the mystery of how planets like Earth were formed is an important question for understanding the origin of life. 

Newly Discovered World Challenges Our Understanding of Planets

TOI-4860b happens to orbit a tiny star, completing each lap in just 1.52 days. It joins a small number of worlds that pose a fascinating puzzle - there are currently no known formation pathways for such chonkin' planets around such small stars.

'Forbidden' planet orbiting a small star

The host star, TOI-5205, is just about four times the size of Jupiter, yet it has somehow managed to form a Jupiter-sized planet, which is quite surprising.

A Compelling New Hypothesis Could Finally Explain How Earth Formed

The planets in our Solar System formed progressively. Small grains grew over time into kilometer-​sized planetesimals by accumulating more and more material through their gravitational pull.

Planets Don't Wait for Their Star to Form First

It looks like we may have to update our theories on how stars and planets form in new solar systems. According to a new study, it looks like planets and stars can form and grow up together.

Two Newborn Planets Orbiting a Distant Star

A new study presents the first-ever direct images of twin baby planets forming around their star. The proud mama is PDS 70, a star in the Centaurus constellation. It’s about 370 light years away.

Pictures of Planet-Forming Disks Around Young Stars

Astronomy is advancing to the point where we can see planets forming around young stars. This was an unthinkable only a few years ago. It was only two years ago that astronomers captured the first image of a newly-forming planet.

Moon-forming disk discovered around distant planet

Using Earth's most powerful array of radio telescopes, astronomers have made the first observations of a circumplanetary disk of gas and dust like the one that is believed to have birthed the moons of Jupiter.

Mercury's thin, dense crust

A planetary scientist has used careful mathematical calculations to determine the density of Mercury's crust, which is thinner than anyone thought.

This Massive Exoplanet Is Being Born Right Now

For the first time, astronomers have directly observed a planet in the making.