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Collection:
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NASA Spitzer Space Telescope Collection
Collection
NASA Spitzer Space Telescope Collection
Collection
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Title:
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Mini Solar System in the Making
Title
Mini Solar System in the Making
Title
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Description:
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This artist's concept shows a brown dwarf surrounded by a swirling disk of planet-building dust. NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope spotted such a disk around a surprisingly low-mass brown dwarf, or "failed star."Ê The brown dwarf, called OTS 44, is only 15 times the size of Jupiter, making it the smallest brown dwarf known to host a planet-forming, or protoplanetary disk.
Astronomers believe that this unusual system will eventually spawn planets. If so, they speculate that OTS 44's disk has enough mass to make one small gas giant and a few Earth-sized rocky planets.
OTS 44 is about 2 million years old. At this relatively young age, brown dwarfs are warm and appear reddish in color. With age, they grow cooler and darker.
Description
This artist's concept shows a brown dwarf surrounded by a swirling disk of planet-building dust. NASA's Spitzer Space Telescope spotted such a disk around a surprisingly low-mass brown dwarf, or "failed star."Ê The brown dwarf, called OTS 44, is only 15 times the size of Jupiter, making it the smallest brown dwarf known to host a planet-forming, or protoplanetary disk.
Astronomers believe that this unusual system will eventually spawn planets. If so, they speculate that OTS 44's disk has enough mass to make one small gas giant and a few Earth-sized rocky planets.
OTS 44 is about 2 million years old. At this relatively young age, brown dwarfs are warm and appear reddish in color. With age, they grow cooler and darker.
Description
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Press Release:
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Press_Release
Press Release
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Release Credit:
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NASA/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle (SSC)
Release_Credit
NASA/JPL-Caltech/T. Pyle (SSC)
Release Credit
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Journal Article:
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Spitzer Identification of the Least Massive Known Brown Dwarf with a Circumstellar Disk [ http://www.spitzer.…]
Journal_Article
Spitzer Identification of the Least Massive Known Brown Dwarf with a Circumstellar Disk [ http://www.spitzer.…] Journal Article
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Related links:
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Related_links
Related links
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facet_what:
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Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
Spitzer Space Telescope
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Earth
facet_what
Earth
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Jupiter
facet_what
Jupiter
facet_what
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facet_what:
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Gemini
facet_what
Gemini
facet_what
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facet_what:
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OTS
facet_what
OTS
facet_what
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facet_where:
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Jupiter
facet_where
Jupiter
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL)
facet_where
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facet_where:
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Stennis Space Center (SSC)
facet_where
Stennis Space Center (SSC)
facet_where
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Image #:
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ssc2005-06b
Image_#
ssc2005-06b
Image #
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original url:
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original_url
original url
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UID:
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SPD-SPITZ-ssc2005-06 b
UID
SPD-SPITZ-ssc2005-06 b
UID
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