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The Strange Orbits of ‘Tatooine’ Planetary Disks

The Strange Orbits of ‘Tatooine’ Planetary Disks

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA)  have found striking orbital geometries in protoplanetary disks around binary stars. While disks orbiting the most compact binary star systems share very nearly the same plane, disks encircling wide binaries have orbital planes that are severely tilted. These systems...

ALMA Reveals Unusual Composition of Interstellar Comet 2I/Borisov

ALMA Reveals Unusual Composition of Interstellar Comet 2I/Borisov

2I/Borisov likely formed in extremely cold environment, high amounts of carbon monoxide show A galactic visitor entered our solar system last year – interstellar comet 2I/Borisov. When astronomers pointed the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) toward the comet on 15 and 16 December 2019, for the first time they directly observed...

ALMA Spots Most Distant Dusty Galaxy Hidden in Plain Sight

ALMA Spots Most Distant Dusty Galaxy Hidden in Plain Sight

Astronomers using the Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) have spotted the light of a massive galaxy seen only 970 million years after the Big Bang. This galaxy, called MAMBO-9, is the most distant dusty star-forming galaxy that has ever been observed without the help of a gravitational lens . Dusty star-forming galaxies are the...

Gas ‘Waterfalls’ Reveal Infant Planets around Young Star

Gas ‘Waterfalls’ Reveal Infant Planets around Young Star

** Synopsis: For the first time, astronomers using ALMA have witnessed 3D motions of gas in a planet-forming disk. At three locations in the disk around a young star called HD 163296, gas is flowing like a waterfall into gaps that are most likely caused by planets in formation. These gas flows have long been predicted and would directly influence...