Recently captured ALMA images show the planet-forming disk around the young, Sun-like star TW Hydrae. The photo above reveals the classic rings and gaps that signify planets are forming in this system.

Recently released images from the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) reveal never-before-seen details of what astronomers believe may be a “baby Earth” or an even more massive “super-Earth” forming.

The images show the planet-forming disk around TW Hydrae, a sunlike star close to Earth. The planet is about 10 million years old, making it a veritable newborn, according to a release from the observatory. Combined with its close proximity to Earth, TW Hydrae has become a popular study subject for researchers.

The developing planet is about 175 light years away and has a face-on orientation that provides a rare, undistorted view of the complete disk.

"Previous studies with optical and radio telescopes confirm that this star hosts a prominent disk with features that strongly suggest planets are beginning to coalesce," said lead author of the paper on TW Hydrae, Sean Andrews. "The new ALMA images show the disk in unprecedented detail, revealing a series of concentric dusty bright rings and dark gaps, intriguing features that suggest a planet with an Earth-like orbit is forming there."

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Pronounced gaps near the star are 3 billion and 6 billion kilometers from the central stars, which are similar distances from the sun to Uranus and Pluto. These are also likely the result of particles that came together and formed planets before sweeping their orbits clear of dust and gas, and corralling the remaining material into bands.

Scientists believe studying young star systems like TW Hydrae can help them learn about the solar system’s past.

“TW Hydrae is quite special. It is the nearest known protoplanetary disc to Earth and it may closely resemble the solar system when it was only 10 million years old,” co-author David Wilner told DailyMail.

By studying TW Hydrae, astronomers hope to get a better understanding of Earth’s evolution and prospects for similar systems throughout the galaxy. Astronomers are now trying to find out how common these features are in discs around other young stars and how they may change in the future.

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