A Groundbreaking Finding in Planet Formation

Astronomers have made a stunning revelation: they’ve captured planets in the act of being born! These embryonic worlds are believed to gradually come together over billions of years, reminiscent of how our own Jupiter was formed 4.5 billion years ago.

Protoplanetary Discs: The Cosmic Nurseries

The researchers have pinpointed planet-forming discs, known as protoplanetary discs, around young stars DG Tau and HL Tau, located a staggering 450 light-years away from Earth. These discs are rich with the building blocks necessary for creating new planetary systems.

Filling in the Gaps of Our Cosmic Understanding

Revealed at the Royal Astronomical Society's National Astronomy Meeting 2025, these observations are shedding light on one of the most elusive pieces of the planet formation puzzle. Dr. Katie Hesterly from the SKA Observatory states, "These observations show that discs like DG Tau and HL Tau already contain large reservoirs of planet-forming pebbles, sufficient to build planetary systems even larger than our own solar system!"

The PEBBLeS Project: Pioneering Planet Discovery

This remarkable research is part of the PEBBLeS project (Planet Earth Building-Blocks -- a Legacy eMERLIN Survey), led by Professor Jane Greaves from Cardiff University. The goal? To uncover clues about how and where planets form around stars that will eventually become suns like ours.

Revolutionary Techniques for a New Era of Astronomy

Using the advanced e-MERLIN array—consisting of seven radio telescopes connected across 217 km (135 miles) in the UK—scientists have the unique ability to study protoplanetary discs with unparalleled resolution and sensitivity. This technology allows them to locate solid materials forming within these discs, thus unraveling the earliest stages of planet formation.

Peering into the Cosmic Past for Future Insights

Since the 1990s, astronomers have detected approximately 2,000 fully formed planets and numerous gas and dust discs, but the intermediate phases of formation have remained a mystery. Dr. Anita Richards from the Jodrell Bank Centre emphasizes that younger stars were once thought to be surrounded by vast discs of gas and tiny particles, but detecting the actual formation of planets is a more complex challenge.

Imaging the Birth of Planets

The e-MERLIN observations have unveiled a striking image of DG Tau's disc, showing that centimetre-sized pebbles have already formed out to Neptune-like orbits. HL Tau presents a similar scenario. Such insights promise a glimpse into the future capabilities of the Square Kilometre Array (SKA), set to revolutionize our understanding of protoplanetary discs across the galaxy.

Anticipating the Future of Cosmic Observations

Dr. Hesterly notes, "e-MERLIN is already demonstrating what’s possible, and the SKA telescope will take us even further." As the science verification with the SKA-Mid telescope launches in 2031, we’re on the brink of exploring hundreds of planetary systems, unraveling the mysteries of how planets come into existence.