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May 4, 2020

Gas flows like a waterfall into protoplanetary disk gap

For the first time, astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array witnessed 3D motions of gas in a planet-forming disk. This artist impression shows gas flowing like a waterfall into a protoplanetary disk gap, which is most likely caused by an infant planet.

[Research supported by National Science Foundation grant AST 1647375.]

Learn more in the ALMA news story Gas 'waterfalls' reveal infant planets around young star. (Date image taken: Oct. 16, 2019; date originally posted to NSF Multimedia Gallery: May 4, 2020)

Credit: NRAO/AUI/NSF, S. Dagnello


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