All articles tagged with #earth moon formation
Astronomers studying Gaia-GIC-1, a Sun-like star about 11,600 light-years away, observed dramatic brightness dips (up to 25%) starting in 2016 with an opposite infrared brightening later, suggesting a hot dust cloud heated to ~900 K. Modeling indicates a collision between planetesimals near 1 AU, with dust mass around half that of Ceres, providing a rare glimpse into early planetary formation and a potential parallel to the Earth–Moon formation event.
Astronomers reexamining archival data of the star Gaia20ehk, about 11,000 light-years away, detected dips in brightness caused by debris from a collision between two planets. Infrared light spikes indicated hot dust from the crash, a rare event that may resemble the collision that formed Earth and the Moon and offer new insights into how planetary systems assemble elsewhere in the galaxy.
Astronomers analyzing Gaia20ehk, a sun-like star about 11,000 light-years away, observed erratic dimming in visible light with a simultaneous infrared brightening, consistent with a violent collision between two planets that produced hot dust and debris; the event may resemble the Earth–Moon formation, and Rubin Observatory surveys could reveal many more such collisions to illuminate planetary system evolution.