Faintest Planet Ever Seen | Indianapolis News

Astronomers have spotted a dim, gas-giant planet orbiting the young star Beta Pictoris — the faintest ever directly seen from Earth — after a decade-long cosmic hide-and-seek. Two separate teams, using the ESO telescope in Chile and NASA’s Webb Space Telescope, independently discovered it around the same time, both keeping their findings secret to avoid bias. The planet, slightly larger than Jupiter, takes 91 years to orbit its star in a system only 20 million years old — a snapshot of planetary infancy. Located 63 light-years away, this rare direct image offers a glimpse into how solar systems form, with asteroids and comets still swirling around. Listen in comfort:Get a discount on a Soli Pillow: http://solipillow.com/discount/dnn. Advertise on DNN:[email protected] This is an automated, high-level news summary based on public reporting.Report issues to [email protected]. View sources & latest updates:https://sources.thednn.ai/2ed1c22e07581036