New Webb Telescope Research Sheds Light on Rocky Planet Formation

In November of 2023, two separate research endeavors using the James Webb Space Telescope peered into the planet-forming disks surrounding protostars in our galaxy to learn more about how planets are created. Both papers have found new information on how rocky planets are formed, increasing our understanding of planetary evolution and the types of conditions in which rocky worlds can form.

Concept art of star PDS 70 and its protoplanetary disk. Water vapor has been detected in the inner part of the disk, where rocky planets may be forming. The illustration also features one of two known protoplanets currently in the disk. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, J. Olmsted (STScI).

Confirming Theories of Planetary Formation

In a paper published in the Astrophysical Journal Letters on November 8th, astrophysicists using the James Webb Space Telescope found evidence confirming theories about how planet formation works. Current theories suggest that planets form in disks of material that surround newborn stars, known as protoplanetary disks. During this stage of stellar evolution, known as the T Tauri phase, these developing stars eject hot winds into space around them. This energy disturbs the material around the star, causing small bits to stick together and form larger and larger debris. Once enough debris has been gathered together, it becomes a planetesimal.

Theories of planet formation have also proposed that icy pebbles far in the outer regions of protoplanetary disks are essential in planet formation. These icy pebbles are responsible for…