Astronomers have found that the formation of planets in the young solar system began much earlier than
Astronomers have explored some of the oldeststars in the Universe and put forward a new theory of the formation of planetary systems. According to the study, the building blocks of objects such as Jupiter and Saturn begin to form while the young star is growing. Previously, it was believed that planets are formed only when it is finally “ripe.” However, scientists now believe that stars and planets “grow” together.
“This changes our understanding of how planetary systems, including the solar system, formed,” explain the authors of the new work.
As part of the study, astronomers examined the atmospheres of white dwarf stars—ancient, dim remnants of stars similar to the Sun.
White dwarfs are stars consisting of electron-nuclear plasma, devoid of sources of thermonuclear energy and glowing due to their thermal energy, gradually cooling over billions of years.
“Some white dwarfs are ideal laboratories because their rarefied atmosphere is like celestial graveyards,” the scientists write.
The researchers analyzed spectroscopicobservations of the atmospheres of 200 white dwarfs from nearby galaxies. The mixture of elements in the atmospheres of these stars can only be explained by the fact that many of the early asteroids of future planetary systems melted due to short-lived radioactive elements. They existed in the earliest stages of planetary birth, but disintegrated within just a million years. All this can be explained by bursts of radiation from a nascent star.
“In other words, if these asteroids meltedsomething that exists for a very short time at the dawn of the planetary system, then the process of planet formation should also begin very quickly, ”the scientists conclude.
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