Scientists leave space fans with one more delicious treat before the year comes to an end. Astronomers captured this stunning image using the Hubble Space Telescope. largest protoplanetary disk ever observedwhich is shaped like a giant heavenly sandwich. The massive formation of dust and gas, which astronomers call Dracula's Chivito, is about 1,000 light-years from Earth and extends about 400 billion miles. To put this into perspective, NASA estimates this disk is about 40 times larger than ours solar system.
But beyond that, astronomers say more research into the vampire disk could not only make your stomach growl, but also provide new insights into the early formation of other planetary systems, perhaps even our own. Researchers continue to speculate this unusually volatile disk may “represent a larger version of our early solar system.” New discoveries by astronomers published this week in Astrophysical Journal.
Hubble discovered a giant vampire sandwich?
Vampire Disc offers a glimpse into a dramatic planetary past
Planetary disks, sometimes called “planet nurseries”, are the building blocks of solar systems. All planetary systems initially form disks of gas and dust around young stars. Eventually, planets form as material in the disk coalesces and accumulates. This particular disc, officially designated IRAS 23077+6707has an estimated mass that is 10–30 times that of Jupiter, the largest planet in our solar system. Astronomers note that it is both the largest and one of the most unusual disks observed: filamentary features appear on only one of its two sides, suggesting that it is formed by dynamic processes such as recent falls of dust and gas. The result is a composition that is “unexpectedly chaotic and stormy.”
“These new Hubble images show that planetary nurseries may be much more active and chaotic than we expected,” Christina Monschco-author of the study and research fellow at the Center for Astrophysics, a collaboration between Stanford University and the Smithsonian Institution, says the statement.
Meanwhile, this creepy nickname is a reference to the home regions of the astronomers participating in the project. One is from Transylvania (hence Dracula) and the other is from Uruguay, whose national dish is a sandwich called the chivito. The researchers say the image of the flattened disk resembles a hamburger, although one could easily argue that it looks more like hot dog.
Connected: [Hubble Space Telescope caught a second glimpse of comet 3I/ATLAS.]
Don't count out Hubble just yet
Hubble telescopelaunched back in 1990), may not have the most powerful built-in technology compared to recently released James Webb Space Telescopebut he still regularly makes major scientific contributions. Just this year, Hubble saw a rare sight Collision of large space rocksshowed a white dwarf eat a Pluto-like objectand created the largest photomosaic of the nearby Andromeda galaxy to date.
“Hubble has given us a front-row seat to studying the chaotic processes that shape disks as new planets are created—processes that we do not yet fully understand but can now study in entirely new ways,” study co-author from the Center for Astrophysics. Joshua Bennett added.
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