Webb detects neon in young star system, provides insight into planet formation

Date:
Sun, 19 Nov 2023 22:14:07 +0000

Description:
In 2008, observations from NASAs now-retired Spitzer infrared space telescope hinted at the presence of The post Webb detects neon in young star system, provides insight into planet formation appeared first on NASASpaceFlight.com .

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In 2008, observations from NASAs now-retired Spitzer infrared space telescope hinted at the presence of neon within the protoplanetary disk of Sun-like
star SZ Chamaeleontis (SZ Cha). However, Spitzers instruments could not confirm whether this reading was correct. Over a decade after Spitzers
results were published, the joint NASA, European Space Agency, and Canadian Space Agency James Webb Space Telescope observed SZ Cha and directly detected distinct amounts of neon in the protoplanetary disk of SZ Cha confirming Spitzers observations from 2008.

Webbs observations, coupled with Spitzers data from 2008, are allowing scientists to better understand SZ Cha and its future as a star system while also providing scientists with insight into what our own solar system may
have looked like during its formation.



How did we get here? It really goes back to that big question, and SZ Cha is the same type of young star, a T-Tauri star, as our Sun was 4.5 billion years ago at the dawn of the solar system. The raw materials for Earth, and eventually life, were present in the disk of material that surrounded the Sun after it formed, and so studying these other young systems is as close as we can get to going back in time to see how our own story began, said lead
author Catherine Espaillat of Boston University in Massachusetts, who also
led the 2008 Spitzer observations.

Small differences in the specific types of neon detected by Spitzer and Webb have revealed a change in high-energy radiation within the disk a never-before-observed phenomenon. This change in high-energy radiation is predicted to eventually cause the protoplanetary disk around SZ Cha to evaporate, limiting the total amount of time planets have to form within the disk.Neon is a great indicator of how much radiation is hitting and eroding the protoplanetary disk around a star, which is why many scientists search
for neon around young stars. 15 years ago, Spitzer saw unusual readings of neon III in a still-developing solar system. Webb just discovered the
abnormal neon III has all but disappeared. Scientists believe clues to our
own solar systems past may lie in these flashing neon signs: https://t.co/HfHMRONG8N pic.twitter.com/Qpk2JSPh6V

NASA Webb Telescope (@NASAWebb) November 15, 2023



Spitzers observations hinted at the presence of neon III within SZ Chas protoplanetary disk an extremely rare neon reading that is uncommon in other young T-Tauri star disks, specifically protoplanetary disks that are continuously exposed to high-energy X-rays. The presence of neon III means that the aforementioned high-energy radiation within SZ Chas disk was being produced by ultraviolet (UV) light rather than the more common X-ray light.
It was the only detection of neon III in a sample of 50 to 60 stellar protoplanetary disks, making the difference in UV light and X-rays even more significant for the planets within SZ Chas disk and the lifetime of the disk as a whole. See Also JWST Mission Updates Space Science Coverage NSF Store Click here to Join L2

Planets are essentially in a race against time to form up in the disk before it evaporates. In computer models of developing systems, extreme ultraviolet radiation allows for 1 million more years of planet formation than if the evaporation is predominately caused by X-rays, said co-author Thanawuth Thanathibodee of Boston University.

However, when Espaillat et al. returned to SZ Cha and its protoplanetary disk with Webb, they found that the neon III signature detected by Spitzer wasnt there likely meaning that the neon III within SZ Chas protoplanetary disk
had entirely disappeared. The disappearance of the neon III from the disk was probably due to the dominance of X-ray radiation within the disk a typical occurrence within these types of protoplanetary disks.

More specifically, the team believes that different neon signatures within SZ Chas disk create a variable wind that, when present within the disk, causes
UV light to be absorbed meaning only X-rays are left behind to pummel the disk when the UV light is absorbed. These types of winds are not uncommon in newly forming star systems with energetic stars at their core, but occasionally, there is a quiet period where the winds dont exist in the disk. This quiet period is what allowed for the presence of neon III in the disk when Spitzer observed SZ Cha in 2008. Data from Webb and Spitzers
observations of SZ Cha. Note the absence of neon III in Webbs observations. (Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Ralf Crawford (STScI))

Both the Spitzer and Webb data are excellent, so we knew this had to be something new we were observing in the SZ Cha system a significant change in conditions in just 15 years, explained co-author Ardjan Sturm of Leiden University, Leiden, Netherlands.

Discovering the variable wind and the disappearance of neon III from the system were just two of the many mysteries of SZ Cha, and even following
their discoveries Espsillat et al. still have many questions. The team is already planning to use Webb to observe SZ Cha again, as well as with other telescopes.

It will be important to study SZ Cha, and other young systems, in multiple wavelengths of light, like X-ray and visible light, to discover the true nature of this variability weve found. Its possible that brief, quiet periods dominated by extreme UV radiation are common in many young planetary systems, but we just have not been able to catch them, said co-author Caeley Pittman
of Boston University.

Webb and Spitzers observations continue to show how useful infrared
telescopes are for discovering and investigating various objects and
phenomena in the universe. Without observations like the SZ Cha observations, scientists wouldnt have known about the variable wind and how it affects neon and other elements within a young T-Tauri stars protoplanetary disk.

Once again, the universe is showing us that none of its methods are as simple as we might like to make them. We need to rethink, re-observe, and gather
more information. Well be following the neon signs, Espaillat explained.

Espaillat et al.s research was published in The Astrophysical Journal
Letters journal on Nov. 15.

(Lead image: Artists concept of SZ Cha and its protoplanetary disk. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, Ralf Crawford (STScI))

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Link to news story:
https://www.nasaspaceflight.com/2023/11/webb-szcha/


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