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Discovered: Water vapour on Sun-like star HL Tauri

Scientists using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have discovered a significance presence of water vapour in the inner region of a gas and dust disk surrounding HL Tauri - a young star, potentially marking the birthplace of planets, Interesting Engineering reported. Read More

Thursday February 29, 2024 6:32 PM , ummid.com Science Desk

Mumbai: Scientists using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have discovered a significance presence of water vapour in the inner region of a gas and dust disk surrounding HL Tauri - a young star, potentially marking the birthplace of planets, Interesting Engineering reported.

The telescope focused on HL Tauri, the a Sun-like star located 450 light-years away, revealing an unexpected abundance of water, estimated to be at least three times the volume of Earth's oceans.

Lead author Stefano Facchini from the University of Milan expressed astonishment at capturing "an image of oceans of water vapour in the same region where a planet is likely forming."

The findings provide unprecedented insights into the conditions conducive to planetary development.

These discoveries challenge previous debates on Earth's water origin and propose a mechanism for delivering water to forming planets before potential asteroid collisions.

This suggests a possible influence on planetary chemical composition, akin to Earth's development 4.5 billion years ago.

“It is truly remarkable that we can not only detect but also capture detailed images and spatially resolve water vapour at a distance of 450 light-years from us ,” adds co-author Leonardo Testi, an astronomer at the University of Bologna, Italy.

The ‘spatially resolved’ observations with ALMA allow astronomers to determine the distribution of water in different regions of the disc.

“Taking part in such an important discovery in the iconic HL Tauri disc was beyond what I had ever expected for my first research experience in astronomy,” adds Mathieu Vander Donckt from the University of Liège, Belgium, who was a master’s student when he participated in the research.

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