A newly formed exoplanet may have been discovered by astronomers after University of Galway researchers identified what appears to be a gas giant significantly larger than Jupiter within a planet-forming disk.
The team captured images of the formation site using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope in Chile, revealing a strikingly structured disk orbiting a young star. Notably, the disk extends approximately 130 astronomical units from its parent star—more than four times the distance between the Sun and Neptune in our own solar system.
The Disc Gap
Roughly 50 astronomical units from the central star lies a prominent gap—an eye in the cosmic storm. This void, stretching across 40 astronomical units, is larger than our entire solar system and features a set of spiral arms visible in the images. The presence of this gap aligns with theoretical predictions about the location of a forming gas giant. Within it, the researchers identified two possible points of light that could indicate the planet’s position.
“While our team has now observed close to 100 possible planet-forming disks around nearby stars, this image is something special,” said lead author Dr. Christian Ginski, lecturer at the School of Natural Sciences, University of Galway. “One rarely finds a system with both rings and spiral arms in a configuration that almost perfectly fits the predictions of how a forming planet is supposed to shape its parent disk according to theoretical models.”
Detecting a Hidden giant exoPlanet
The observed structure—rings, spirals, and the gap—led the researchers to hypothesize the presence of a planet. While multiple smaller planets could theoretically account for the observed features, such a scenario would likely produce more tightly wound spiral arms. This makes the single massive planet hypothesis more plausible.
Supporting this possibility, the team also detected a possible atmospheric emission within the gap. However, they noted that further investigation is required to confirm this finding.
“Detections like this bring us one step closer to understanding how planets form in general and how our solar system might have formed in the distant past,” Ginski added.
Potential Candidates
Closer examination of the images revealed two distinct points of light within the gap. While both could be separate planets, the researchers believe the data more strongly supports the existence of a single gas giant.
“We have to do a lot of post-processing with the images to remove stellar light, which would drown out the disk and possible planets,” Dr. Ginski told The Debrief. “This same post-processing can, in some cases, lead to false positive planet detections, especially when there is complex structured light from a planet-forming disk in the vicinity. So we see two separate pointy things in two separate images, which could be planet signals, but we do not trust that these signals are real.”
“It is much more likely, in my opinion, that both of these are processing artifacts and that we have not yet detected an actual signal from the planet that shapes the disk,” Dr. Ginski added.
A Giant Exoplanet on the Horizon
The research was supported by collaborators from the UK, Germany, Australia, the USA, the Netherlands, Italy, Chile, France, and Japan. The study involved analysis of near-infrared imaging and UV-to-near-infrared spectroscopic observations.
“Besides this exceptionally beautiful planet-forming cradle, there is something else that I find quite special about this study,” Ginski said. “Along with the large international team that we assembled for these observations, four of our own University of Galway graduate students were involved in this study. Without the critical help of Chloe Lawlor, Jake Byrne, Dan McLachlan, and Matthew Murphy, we would not have been able to finalise the analysis of these new results. It is my great privilege to work with such talented young researchers.”
Further research is on the horizon. The team has secured observation time with the James Webb Space Telescope to continue their investigation. Its high resolution and sensitivity may enable the first direct image of the suspected planet, likely in thermal wavelengths, though near-infrared or optical detection is also possible. Confirming a planet within the disk would provide a powerful new resource for studying how planets form.
The paper “Disk Evolution Study Through Imaging of Nearby Young Stars (DESTINYS): Evidence of Planet-Disk Interaction in the 2MASSJ16120668-3010270 System” is forthcoming in Astronomy and Astrophysics.
Ryan Whalen covers science and technology for The Debrief. He holds an MA in History and a Master of Library and Information Science with a certificate in Data Science. He can be contacted at ryan@thedebrief.org, and follow him on Twitter @mdntwvlf.