Tag Archive for 'Planetesimal belt'

A planetary collision around star Gaia20ehk. Image credit: Andy Tzanidakis.

Astronomers Witness Aftermath of Catastrophic Planetary Collision

Mar 11, 2026 by News Staff

An unusual flickering of a young F-type star called Gaia20ehk and an expanding cloud of dust around it suggest that a catastrophic planetary crash unfolded...

This ARKS gallery of faint debris disks reveals details about their shape: belts with multiple rings, wide smooth halos, sharp edges, and unexpected arcs and clumps, which hint at the presence of planets shaping these disks; and chemical make-up: the amber colors highlight the location and abundance of the dust in the 24 disks surveyed, while the blue their carbon monoxide gas location and abundance in the six gas-rich disks. Image credit: Sebastian Marino / Sorcha Mac Manamon / ARKS Collaboration.

ALMA Captures Sharpest Views Yet of Exoplanetary Debris Disks

Jan 20, 2026 by News Staff

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have produced the unprecedented high-resolution images of 24 debris disks —...

This gallery contains 74 images of different star systems with exocometary belts taken with the Submillimeter Array (SMA) and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter (ALMA) radio telescope facilities. Image credit: Luca Matrà.

Astronomers Discover Exocometary Belts around 74 Stars

Feb 12, 2025 by News Staff

Astronomers have imaged planetesimal belts in 74 planetary systems as part of the REsolved ALMA and SMA Observations of Nearby Stars (REASONS) survey. This...