Contoh Kelahiran Planet taurus

EMBARGOED UNTIL: 1 PM (EDT) MAY 28, 1998

PHOTO NO.: STScI-PRC98-19


HUBBLE'S FIRST DIRECT LOOK AT POSSIBLE PLANET
AROUND ANOTHER STAR

The brightest objects in the image are the binary protostars, which
illuminate an extended cloud of gas and dust (image center) from
which the stars formed. So much dust surrounds these protostars
that they are virtually invisible at optical wavelengths. However,
near-infrared light penetrates the overlying dust, revealing the
newborn stars within. The faint multicolor cross extending from
the neighborhood of the binary is an artifact produced when HST
observes bright stars.

At lower left there is a point of light many times fainter than the
binary. Theoretical calculations indicate that this companion is
much too dim to be an ordinary star; instead, a hot young protoplanet
several times the mass of Jupiter is consistent with the observed
brightness. The candidate protoplanet appears at a distance of
130 billion miles from the binary (1400 times the Earth's distance
from the Sun). A bright streak of nebulosity extends from the
binary toward the faint companion, possibly indicating that the
protoplanet was ejected from the binary system.

Current models predict that very young giant planets are still warm
from gravitational contraction and formation processes, with
temperatures as high as a few thousand degrees Fahrenheit. This makes
them relatively bright in infrared light compared to old giant planets
such as Jupiter. Even so, young planets are difficult to find in new
solar systems because the glare of the central star drowns out their
feeble glow. Young planets ejected from binary systems would
therefore represent a unique opportunity to study extrasolar planets
with current astronomical technology.

FAST FACTS:
Star Name:    TMR-1 (Taurus Molecular Ring, star 1 - binary)
Planet name:    TMR-1C
Constellation:    Taurus
Coordinates:    4h39m15s RA, +25d53m Dec.
Distance:    450 light-years
Field of view:    19 arseconds