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Visual 1: The Debris Disk Around Beta Pictoris This image of the circumstellar disk around the southern star Beta Pictoris was obtained with the 3.6-m telescope and the Grenoble Observatory coronograph. It shows (in false colors) the light reflected by dust around the young star at infrared wavelengths. The disk is very close to edge-on. This is a coronagraphic image, meaning that light from the bright central star was blocked out during observation making it easier to see the relatively faint dust. The Beta Pic disk is very likely an infant solar system in the process of forming terrestrial planets. [June 1997] Credit: Jean-Luc Beuzit, et al. Grenoble Observatory, European Southern Observatory |
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Visual 2: In the Beta Pictoris Disk Artist’s conception of the view towards the young star Beta Pictoris from the outer edge of its disk. This disk of dust and gas orbiting the star is produced by collisions between and evaporation of asteroids and comets. A giant planet may have already formed and terrestrial planets may be forming. A young terrestrial planet gaining mass by collision with an asteroid is shown in the middle of the panel. The young terrestrial planet is dry, without an atmosphere. It will likely acquire one later from the impact of water (or other kind of ice)-rich asteroids. Astronomers using NASA's Far Ultraviolet Spectroscopic Explorer telescope have found that the gas in the Beta Pictoris disk is extremely carbon-rich, much more so than expected based on what is known about asteroids and comets in the Solar System. The inset panels show two possible outcomes for mature terrestrial planets around Beta Pic. The top one is a water-rich planet similar to the Earth; the bottom one is a carbon-rich planet, with a smoggy, methane-rich atmosphere similar to that of Titan, a moon of Saturn. Credit:NASA/FUSE/Lynette Cook |
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Visual 3: Interplanetary Dust Particles (IDPs) An interplanetary dust particle (IDP) collected in the stratosphere by a NASA U2 spy plane. The particle is about 10 millionths of a meter (10 microns) across. IDPs are thought to come from comets and primitive asteroids. Except for gases like hydrogen and helium, the compositions of these particles are similar to that of the Sun. They can also be quite carbon-rich because they contain abundant organic matter and carbonates. |
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Visual 4: Chondritic Meteorite A primitive chondritic meteorite. This image is about 10 cm across. Chondritic meteorites are fragments of asteroids. Like interplanetary dust particles, the abundances of rock forming elements in these meteorites are similar to that of the Sun. They also contain carbon in the form of organics and carbonate, but less than IDPs. |