Astronomers have detected the earliest signs of rocky planet formation around a young, sun-like star—offering a rare window into how systems like our own solar system begin.
In what scientists are calling an unprecedented view of “time zero,” researchers observed the first stages of planetary development, capturing a glimpse of the hot, inner region where Earth-like planets take shape.
“This is the first definitive evidence that rocky planets are beginning to form around young protostars,” said Melissa McClure of Leiden Observatory in the Netherlands, who led the international team. “We’re witnessing the very start of planet formation.”
Fred Ciesla of the University of Chicago, who was not involved in the study, described the discovery—published in Nature—as a milestone. “It’s something astronomers have long hoped to see,” he said. “This opens up exciting new possibilities for understanding how planetary systems emerge.”
Using data from NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope and the European Southern Observatory in Chile, scientists focused on a young star called HOPS-315. The infant star—still in its early evolutionary stages at 100,000 to 200,000 years old—is located about 1,370 light-years from Earth. Like our sun, it’s a yellow dwarf in the making.
