Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics have announced the detection of a second ‘protoplanet’ orbiting star WISPIT 2, which is still in the process of forming.
The research team behind the discovery said spotting the second protoplanet at such early stages of formation, alongside a previously discovered gas-giant protoplanet forming in the same planetary system, offers scientists a “rare glimpse” into the ‘birth’ of new worlds.
Developing Protoplanets Offers Scientists a Rare Glimpse into the Birth of New Worlds
According to the team’s announcement, WISPIT 2 is roughly five million years old. For comparison, the Sun is approximately 4.6 billion years old, making WISPIT 2 a mere fraction of its age.
Much as scientists theorize our solar system appeared in its earliest stages, this distant system is surrounded by a disc of gas and dust. In planetary formation models, new planets are formed within this protoplanetary disc by accreting matter until they are large enough to be classified as a planet.
When researchers from the University of Galway, Leiden Observatory, and the University of Arizona were observing this forming system in August 2025, they discovered an unfinished gas giant planet. Further measurements confirmed that this protoplanet was about five times the mass of Jupiter, the largest gas giant in our solar system.
Dubbed WISPIT 2b, the new planet orbits over 57 astronomical units (1 AU is the distance from Earth to the Sun) from its host star. The research team notes that this is ten times the distance between the Sun and Jupiter.
Now, the Max Planck research team, which focused on follow-up observations led by the University of Galway, has suggested the presence of a second, newly forming protoplanet, WISPIT 2c.
Discovery Shows That New Planets Form in Tandem Like Our Solar System Did
According to the initial analysis of the newly forming exoplanet, WISPIT 2c is about twice as massive as its companion, WISPIT 2b. The larger protoplanet also orbits much closer to its host star, with an average distance of about 14 AU. The team notes that this is four times closer than WISPIT 2b.
Although the newly discovered planet’s greater mass makes it intrinsically brighter than its predecessor, due to thermal emission and ongoing accretion, orbiting closer to its host star has nonetheless made detecting its reflected light more challenging, leading to the earlier discovery of the smaller WISPIT 2b.
Fortunately, both the European Southern Observatory’s (ESO) Very Large Telescope Interferometer (VLTI) and the GRAVITY instrument were recently upgraded, thereby improving their sensitivity and resolution. The research team said this unprecedented sensitivity enabled them to detect the planet’s “extremely faint light” even though the light from its host star is over 1,000 times brighter.
Although researchers have discovered over 5,000 exoplanets beyond our solar system in the last three decades, PDS-70 remains the best-known candidate to host multiple protoplanets still in the process of formation. This makes WISPIT 2 an extremely rare system, offering scientists an unprecedented study opportunity.
“Finding two planets at such an early stage at the same time is almost like witnessing a rare twin birth,” explained Frank Eisenhauer, Director of the Infrared Group at MPE and project leader of GRAVITY+. “This shows that planetary systems do not develop one after the other, but in parallel – much like our own Solar System once did.”
WISPIT 2 System Offers a “Unique Laboratory for Studying Planetary Formation”
Although no immediate follow-up observations are scheduled, the researchers said they plan to use the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope (VLT) and the GRAVITY+ instrument in the future. They also have high hopes for the NICADO instrument, still under development at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics facility for the Extremely Large Telescope.
When discussing the potentially valuable insights scientists can glean from observing planets in the earliest stages of formation like those in the WISPIT 2 system, the researchers noted that direct observations of the two planets should provide a better understanding of how gas, dust, and gravity coalesce to form new planets, “and thus how worlds are born.”
“WISPIT 2 will become a unique laboratory for studying planetary formation,” explained Guillaume Bourdarot, a scientist at the MPE and member of the GRAVITY+ consortium. “By combining interferometric precision with new adaptive optics, we were able to measure a signal that had previously been completely hidden in the starlight.”
“This is a clear example of how the development of cutting-edge astronomical instruments leads to fundamental discoveries,” the MPE scientists explained.
Read more about the discovery of WISPIT 2c on the Max Planck Institute project home page.
Christopher Plain is a Science Fiction and Fantasy novelist and Head Science Writer at The Debrief. Follow and connect with him on X, learn about his books at plainfiction.com, or email him directly at christopher@thedebrief.org.