The mysteries of the Universe are as vast as the Universe itself. Proof of this is the recent discovery made by astronomers at the University of North Carolina. They chanced upon a very large planet orbiting a dwarf star. The astounding fact is the planet’s young age, which could help unveil some of the Universe’s lesser-known facts.
What makes the discovery of this planet astonishing?
Discovering a planet is, in and of itself, a groundbreaking occurrence. Nevertheless, over the last few years, several planets have been discovered. So, the event doesn’t take place that often, but it is not unheard of. The fact that left the astronomers of the University of North Carolina who found it open-mouthed is that this new planet seems to be very, very new.
A toddler planet on steroids
Most of the planets unearthed in the last few years were between 10 and 40 million years old. This planet seems to be only three million years old, practically a baby in terms of the formation of planets. To offer some element of comparison, experts believe the Earth to be around 4.5 billion years old.
So, finding a planet can happen. Finding a cheeky toddler one? Not so much, it seems. Furthermore, to keep our comparison with our very own old, long-in-the-tooth planet, this youngster is 10 times the size of the Earth. It has a third of the mass of Jupiter.
A strange orbit around a dwarf star
We could say that we have all done a representation of the Solar System in our time at school. We’ve painted Styrofoam balls for each of the planets and placed them in concentric circles made of wire so that they could orbit the sun. This new planet does not orbit its dwarf star like the planets in our system do, following the pattern of a disk.
Furthermore, planet Earth takes a whole year to circle the sun. We cannot blame its slowness on its advanced age, but on the distance it has to travel to complete the round. This new, energetic young pup of a planet can orbit its star in just a week, but it is due to its closeness.
What could this discovery mean for the Solar System?
There is still much to be unveiled about the new finding. Astronomers think that the new planet could be one called a super-Earth, which is rocky, or another called a sub-Neptune, which is made of gas and could still be in a formation process.
Experts suspect that the planet spotted could be a gateway to finding out what the Solar System’s neighbors are like. Madyson Barber, one of the astronomers studying the discovery along with its dwarf star, explained that they believe the Earth took about 10 to 20 million years to take shape.
“Astronomy helps us explore our place in the Universe — where we came from and where we might be going. Discovering planets like this one allows us to look back in time, catching a glimpse of planetary formation as it happens,” Barber added.
Barber and her team discovered the planet by using something called the transit method. They focused their NASA TESS telescope on the dwarf star and waited. Suddenly, the new planet passed in front of it and, voilà, the light of the star was dimmed, and they were able to spot the mysterious new planet.
There is much to be unearthed still. However, the discovery has provided clear evidence that a planet can take a shorter time to form. Thereby, pulling the rug out from under the feet of planet formation theories. This new planet, young in age and big in size, could mean the first thread of many discoveries to come.
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