The act of giving birth is a beautiful thing.
So we're told anyways. To be honest, from where we're standing the act of giving birth is a very messy thing what with all the blood and the sweating and the screaming.
The act of a planet being born though? That's something we can get on board with.
Which is why news that scientists have caught sight of planets being born for the first time is very welcome indeed.
Using the Large Binocular Telescope and the Magellan Adaptive Optics System on Earth, scientists have discovered what appears to be at least one planet (called LkCa 15b) about the size of Jupiter or Saturn forming an orbit around its sun-like star. The star system, called LkCa 15, could potentially host multiple worlds still in the process of forming. The information comes from a new study detailing the findings in the journal, Nature.
By studying this young star system, scientists might be able to find the answers to some long standing questions about how planets form and thus gain further insight into the origins of Earth.
The below video has a mixture of satellite images along with an artist's illustration of what the process looks like.
Birth, it IS a beautiful thing.
Via Mashable