TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - For the first time, astronomers have successfully observed the earliest stages of planet formation around a star outside our solar system. Using the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) and the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA), they discovered evidence of the initial processes of planet formation from solid matter.
The research identified early, hot mineral grains beginning to condense around HOPS-315, a baby star approximately 1,300 light-years from Earth, considered an analog to a young sun.
"For the first time, we have identified the earliest moment when planet formation is initiated around a star other than our Sun," said Melissa McClure, a professor at the Leiden Observatory, Leiden University, the Netherlands, and lead author of the research published in the journal Nature.
Her remarks were quoted from a press release on the European Southern Observatory (ESO) website on July 16, 2025.
Edwin Bergin from the University of Michigan, United States, explained that HOPS-315 is enveloped by a protoplanetary disk, which is a disk of gas and dust where planets are born. Within this disk, the team detected the presence of silicon monoxide (SiO) in both gaseous and crystalline mineral forms, indicating that the process of solid material formation is underway.
"This process has never been seen before in a protoplanetary disc — or anywhere outside our Solar System," added Bergin, an astronomy professor and a member of the research team.
These minerals were initially identified using the James Webb Space Telescope, a joint project of the United States, European, and Canadian space agencies. To further confirm the origin of these mineral signals, the team then studied HOPS-315 with ALMA. This telescope, located in Chile's Atacama Desert, is operated by ESO in collaboration with its international partners.
The observations revealed that the signals originated from a small area within the star's disk, equivalent to the orbit of the asteroid belt around our Sun.
"We're really seeing these minerals at the same location in this extrasolar system as where we see them in asteroids in the Solar System," said Logan Francis, a postdoctoral researcher at Leiden Observatory.
This discovery positions HOPS-315's disk as a valuable analog for studying cosmic history. The system is also expected to offer astronomers new opportunities to investigate the early formation of planets in newly created solar systems across the galaxy.
Elizabeth Humphreys, an ESO astronomer and ALMA European Program Manager not involved in the study, praised the findings, expressing great admiration and noting that HOPS-315 could enhance our understanding of how solar systems form.
"This result highlights the combined strength of JWST and ALMA for exploring protoplanetary discs," she concluded.
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