James Webb discovers water in the formation zone of Earth-like planets

Scientists from the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy (MPIA) in Germany have reported the discovery of water in the star system PDS 70. They now believe that rocky planets like Earth may have been rich in liquid from birth. Study this was published in the journal Nature.

PDS 70 is located about 370 light years away. Its age is estimated at 5.4 million years. The star is younger and colder than the Sun, but a protoplanetary disk with forming planets has already arisen around it. Astronomers have been able to confirm the presence of two gas giants in its system.

The water was discovered using the James Webb telescope. The scientists analyzed the infrared emission from dust and gas recorded by the telescope and identified signatures corresponding to water vapor heated to a temperature of about 330 ° C.

The authors of the study have two explanations for this. The first suggests that the liquid is left over from the originally "wet" nebula in which the star formed. And dust and gas “protected” it from decay under the action of ultraviolet radiation. Another source could be gas coming from the outer edges of the PDS 70 disk.

Scientists have not yet found rocky planets similar to ours in the system, but they are convinced that further research on PDS 70 will unravel the mystery of the appearance of water on Earth.