For the first time ever, scientists have seen the very beginning of a solar system forming around a young star. This exciting discovery happened 1,300 light years from Earth in a part of space called the Orion Nebula.
The star, named HOPS-315, is very young and similar to how our Sun looked long ago. Researchers used two powerful tools—the James Webb Space Telescope and the ALMA telescope in Chile—to study it. They saw tiny specks of material, made of hot minerals, starting to come together. These specks are the very first signs of planets forming.
The James Webb Telescope first spotted the minerals. Then, the ALMA telescope helped find exactly where they were, inside a dusty disk that circles HOPS-315. This area is like the asteroid belt that goes around our Sun.
Scientists believe this discovery gives us a look into how our own Solar System may have begun billions of years ago. Melissa McClure, the lead researcher from the Netherlands, said this is the earliest stage of planet formation ever seen around another star.
Another scientist, Merel van ’t Hoff, explained that HOPS-315 looks very much like our Sun when it was young. This makes it a perfect example to study how planets like Earth could form.
