Nearby Star Could Host a Baby Solar System

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Nearby Star Could Host a Baby Solar System

Posted by Soulskill on Wednesday January 30, 2013 @08:23AM from the discovered-spamming-facebook-feed-with-baby-pictures dept.

astroengine writes "With the help of Europe's Herschel Space Observatory and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) in Chile, a team of astronomers have made a lucky discovery about TW Hydrae, the nearest star to the solar system that plays host to a protoplanetary disk. Not only have they gained a more precise estimate of the mass of the material inside the protoplanetary disk, they've also found that it may produce a system of worlds similar to that of the solar system. TW Hydrae may look like the solar system did over 4 billion years ago (abstract). Interestingly, TW Hydrae is also a star that would normally be considered too mature to host a protoplanetary disk. "If there's no chance your project can fail, you're probably not doing very interesting science. TW Hydrae is a good example of how a calculated scientific gamble can pay off," said Thomas Henning, of the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy in Heidelberg."

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Could Host by frovingslosh · 2013-01-30 08:27 · Score: 0

Could Host a Baby Solar System
Could Host? Oh wow!

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1. Re:Could Host by crypticedge · 2013-01-30 08:29 · Score: 2
  
  I think it means it could form a baby solar system, because it contains to materials and mass required for it to start to form. Remember, our universe is still forming new stars even to this day, planets may also be forming, and if we can (over an extremely long period of time) watch that happen, that would be amazing.
2. Re:Could Host by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-30 08:57 · Score: 0
  
  Agree. They strung together a lot of mays, mighta's, and coulda's. And implying that it might look like the infant solar system implies that you know what the infant solar system looked like.
  
  Tie it together with the fact they just "happened" to pick the system with a disc closest to Sol, and the whole thing smacks of sensationalism and a ploy for media attention.
  
  Nothing to see here, move along citizens.
3. Re: Could Host by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-30 11:38 · Score: 0
  
  No. You just have no clue about science. If a scientist is 99% sure he still says "probably" or "could". Why? Cause he is not 99.99999% sure. (Sigma 5)
This is exciting. by Sheetrock · 2013-01-30 08:28 · Score: 3, Insightful

Typically, you only get one of these around a newly formed star, a T Tauri star, or Herbig Ae/Be star. This discovery really broadens the scope for the types of stars that could yield solar systems like our own, and maybe in turn, the likelihood for finding some sort of extraterrestrial life.

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Try not. Do or do not, there is no try.
-- Dr. Spock, stardate 2822-3.
1. Re:This is exciting. by gstoddart · 2013-01-30 08:39 · Score: 4, Informative
  
  This stuff always amazes me. About 20 years ago when I hung out with astrophysics geeks, we were just on the cusp of being able to be in a position to start identifying exoplanets.
  Now we find them all over the place, surrounding stars we never thought would be able to have them. Hell, I think the estimates for the number of planets which would exist was vastly smaller than what we know now.
  The universe is far more vast and complex than we've ever guessed ... and we just keep finding new stuff. And that's friggin' awesome.
  
  --
  Lost at C:>. Found at C.
2. Re:This is exciting. by steelfood · 2013-01-30 10:00 · Score: 1
  
  The world is a big enough place. The universe is substantially bigger.
  
  --
  "If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be."
There's only one solar system... by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-30 08:31 · Score: 0

And its the one with the star Sol.
There's a lot of planetary systems, though.
1. Re:There's only one solar system... by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-30 08:42 · Score: 0
  
  Anyone who refers to the fucking SUN as Sol is a total and utter ponce.
  And Pluto is totally a planet. If you deny it I'll have to ask you to step outside.
2. Re:There's only one solar system... by Lumpy · 2013-01-30 08:51 · Score: 2
  
  And what losers call our planet Earth? It's DIRT get it right!
  God, you people......
  
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  Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
Ob by Hognoxious · 2013-01-30 08:35 · Score: 1

How is babby sollar system formed?

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Confucius say, "Find worm in apple - bad. Find half a worm - worse."
1. Re:Ob by scuzzlebutt · 2013-01-30 08:47 · Score: 1
  
  How Sol get pragnet?
  
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  In C++, your friends can see your privates.
2. Re:Ob by FatdogHaiku · 2013-01-30 12:02 · Score: 2
  
  Obviously we need to ready a ship full of DNA, yet contain our excitement so that the load does not arrive prematurely...
  
  --
  You have the right to remain sentient. If you give up the right to remain sentient, you will be elected to public office
3. Re:Ob by Westwood0720 · 2013-01-31 08:17 · Score: 1
  
  How Sol get pragnet?
  Jesus. Its been, what, ten years since I've played Diablo II and I still get reminded of the Runewords.
Baby Shower? by envelope · 2013-01-30 08:46 · Score: 3, Funny

Whats an appropriate gift for a baby solar system shower?

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1. Re:Baby Shower? by UltraZelda64 · 2013-01-30 08:53 · Score: 1
  
  Sun flares and Roman candles!
2. Re:Baby Shower? by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-30 11:10 · Score: 0
  
  Whats an appropriate gift for a baby solar system shower?
  Water!
3. Re:Baby Shower? by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-30 17:12 · Score: 0
  
  Awww... how CUTE!!! A little tiny BABY solar system! I just want to pinch it's widdle cheeks! Oh it's so ADORABLE!!! Look, it just burped a solar flare and threw a few billion tons of charged particles into space! That's so precious!
Finally science can answer the age old question: by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-30 09:22 · Score: 0

How is babby formed?
Nuke it now by GodfatherofSoul · 2013-01-30 09:29 · Score: 1

Before we've got to deal with insurgent aliens in the future.

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I swear to God...I swear to God! That is NOT how you treat your human!
Why we shouldn't go there by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-30 10:27 · Score: 0

Because only a fool would fly IN to an asteroid belt.
OMG-Grammar Police by Anonymous Coward · 2013-01-30 10:35 · Score: 0

"...team... has..."
Nearest star? by mk_is_here · 2013-01-30 12:05 · Score: 0

No, it's the nearest T Tauri type star (according to Wikipedia). The nearest star to Sol should be Proxima Centauri IIRC.
No. Awesome was lost... by Grog6 · 2013-01-30 13:47 · Score: 2

Nixon was the last president to balance a budget until Clinton.
He did it by cancelling the rest of the Apollo program, and converting it into a clusterfuck called Skylab.
I remember Apollo being the highpoint; it's been downhill since.
Imagine if We'd spent the several Trillion dollars we wasted on Afghanistan and Iraq on a Space Program instead.
That would have been awesome.

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Truth isn't Truth - Guliani