![\"Scientists](\"https:\/\/wp-assets.futurism.com\/2020\/09\/three-stars-ripped-apart-protoplanetary-disc-300x158.jpg\")
<\/div>Topsy-Turvy<\/h2>
For the first time, astronomers have found a star system that ripped apart its own protoplanetary disc<\/a>, the ring of materials that gradually clump together to form planets.<\/p> The star system in question, GW Orionis, is particularly volatile. With three stars at its center, what once was a regular, uniform protoplanetary disk is now warped out of alignment, according to research<\/a> published Thursday in the journal Science<\/em>. It’s an unusual find, and it could help the hunt for more exoplanets elsewhere now that scientists know planets could form in bizarre, unique orbits.<\/p> Thankfully, the damage to the protoplanetary disc isn’t so bad that exoplanets can’t form around the three stars. Even a separate misaligned ring still has enough material to potentially create a new world.<\/p> “Any planets formed within the misaligned ring will orbit the star on highly oblique orbits and we predict that many planets on oblique, wide-separation orbits will be discovered in future planet imaging campaigns,” study co-author Alexander Kreplin of the University of Exeter said in a press release<\/a>.<\/p> The scientists found that the three stars, all of which are in misaligned orbits, could have gradually ripped the disc apart. But a separate team from the University of Victoria thinks that there’s still a missing piece: one exoplanet formed in the middle of the mess that served as a trigger<\/a> for the ensuing chaos.<\/p> “We think that the presence of a planet between these rings is needed to explain why the disc tore apart,” Victoria researcher Jiaqing Bi said in the release.<\/p> READ MORE: <\/strong>New observations show planet-forming disc torn apart by its three central stars<\/a> [ESO]<\/p> More on planet formation:<\/strong> A Baby Exoplanet Is Creating Strange Dust Rings Around Its Star<\/a><\/em><\/p> The post A Three-Star System Ripped Apart Its Own Protoplanetary Disc<\/a> appeared first on Futurism<\/a>.<\/p> See the original post here: Topsy-Turvy For the first time, astronomers have found a star system that ripped apart its own protoplanetary disc , the ring of materials that gradually clump together to form planets. Continue reading Black Sheep<\/h2>
Missing Piece<\/h2>
A Three-Star System Ripped Apart Its Own Protoplanetary Disc<\/a><\/p>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"