4 ms·
According to Wikipedia, "For the first time, we can conclusively see the tell-tale signs of a circumplanetary disk, which helps to support many of the current t
by willemojnr 5y ago
According to Wikipedia, "For the first time, we can conclusively see the tell-tale signs of a circumplanetary disk, which helps to support many of the current theories of planet formation."
I'm confused though... doesn't our own Saturn have a circumplanetary disk?
- leephillips 5y agoDo not read Wikipedia. What is new here is the clear observation of a circumplanetary disk around an exoplanet. Such disks are where moons are formed, so this is the first observation of a moon-forming process outside of our solar system.
- junon 5y ago> so this is the first observation of a moon-forming process outside of our solar system Is that really true? We've never seen moons forming elsewhere in the universe?
- koheripbal 5y agoCorrect. The ability to infer this from observational data was only possible with the technique pioneered in this paper. Remember that we cannot even see exo-planets visually (with one or two very nearby exceptions).
- svachalek 5y agoAccording to Wikipedia, there are not even any confirmed exomoons yet. So it's interesting that a disk was observed first, although given size/brightness that's probably not a surprising result.