A young massive planet in a star-disk system

• Published in: Nature Vol. 451; no. 7174; pp. 38 - 41
• Main Authors: Setiawan, J, Launhardt, R, Henning, Th, Müller, A, Weise, P, Kürster, M
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London Nature Publishing Group UK 03.01.2008; Nature Publishing; Nature Publishing Group
• Subjects: Astrometry; Astronomy; Astrophysics; Dust; Earth, ocean, space; Exact sciences and technology; Extrasolar planetary systems; Humanities and Social Sciences; letter; multidisciplinary; Observations; Photometric and spectroscopic detection ; coronographic detection ; interferometric detection; Planet formation; Planets; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Stars; Stars & galaxies; Germany; Young stars; Stellar winds; Planetary cosmogony; Nearby stars; Extrasolar planets; Stellar radiation; Orbits; Circumstellar disks; Spectroscopical observation; Age; Proto planetary nebula
• ISSN: 0028-0836; 1476-4687; 1476-4679
• DOI: 10.1038/nature06426

There is a general consensus that planets form within disks of dust and gas around newly born stars. Details of their formation process, however, are still a matter of ongoing debate. The timescale of planet formation remains unclear, so the detection of planets around young stars with protoplanetary disks is potentially of great interest. Hitherto, no such planet has been found. Here we report the detection of a planet of mass (9.8±3.3)MJupiter around TW Hydrae (TW Hya), a nearby young star with an age of only 8-10 Myr that is surrounded by a well-studied circumstellar disk. It orbits the star with a period of 3.56 days at 0.04 au, inside the inner rim of the disk. This demonstrates that planets can form within 10 Myr, before the disk has been dissipated by stellar winds and radiation.