Beta PIctoris Archives - Page 3 of 3 - Astrobiology

Complex nebulosity and substructures in the disk, as seen in F2300C. The stretch is adjusted to bring up fainter features observed in the outer regions. Relevant features are annotated including the main and secondary disk planes and cat’s tail. The nebulosity to the west (top) includes both irregular clumps or knots, and also some apparent linear striations or tendrils. To the east (bottom) the clumps are fainter and fewer but still present, including one particular bright clump at bottom center. These clumps are consistently detected in identical positions on the sky seen in the two distinct rolls, confirming they are astrophysical in origin rather than any instrumental artifact. -- astro-ph.EP

Astronomy & Telescopes, Beta Pictoris, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

JWST-TST High Contrast: Asymmetries, Dust Populations And Hints Of A Collision In The β Pictoris Disk With NIRCam And MIRI

by Keith CowingJanuary 14, 2024January 14, 2024

We present the first JWST MIRI and NIRCam observations of the prominent debris disk around Beta Pictoris. Coronagraphic observations in 8 filters spanning from 1.8 to 23~μm provide an unprecedentedly […]

This image from Webb’s MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument) shows the star system Beta Pictoris. An edge-on disk of dusty debris generated by collisions between planetesimals (orange) dominates the view. A hotter, secondary disk (cyan) is inclined by about 5 degrees relative to the primary disk. The curved feature at upper right, which the science team nicknamed the “cat’s tail,” has never been seen before. A coronagraph (black circle and two small disks) has been used to block the light of the central star, whose location is marked with a white star shape. In this image light at 15.5 microns is colored cyan and 23 microns is orange (filters F1550C and F2300C, respectively). NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, C. Stark and K. Lawson (NASA GSFC), J. Kammerer (ESO), and M. Perrin (STScI). -- NASA

Astronomy & Telescopes, Beta Pictoris, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release

Webb Telescope Discovers Dusty ‘Cat’s Tail’ In The Beta Pictoris System

by Keith CowingJanuary 11, 2024January 14, 2024

Beta Pictoris, a young planetary system located just 63 light-years away, continues to intrigue scientists even after decades of in-depth study.

Outcome after a 10 Myr simulation of a disk of planetesimals initially between 0.5 au and 45 au in the environment of β Pic b and β Pic c taken from solution #2 from Table 1, viewed from above. The red bullets show the location of the planets and the star, and the black dots are the remaining planetesimals. -- astro-ph.EP

Astronomy & Telescopes, Beta Pictoris, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

Dynamics Of The Beta Pictoris Planetary System And Its Falling Evaporating Bodies

by Keith CowingJanuary 2, 2024January 14, 2024

For decades, the spectral variations of Beta Pictoris have been modelled as the result of the evaporation of exocomets close to the star, termed falling evaporating bodies (FEBs).

beta pictures

Astronomy & Telescopes, Beta Pictoris, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

Has The Dust Clump In The Debris Disk of Beta Pictoris Moved?

by Keith CowingMarch 18, 2023January 14, 2024

The edge-on debris disk of the nearby young star Beta Pictoris shows an unusual brightness asymmetry in the form of a clump.

20 example fitted orbits

Alpha Centauri, Astronomy & Telescopes, Beta Pictoris, Comets and Asteroids, Epsilon Eridani, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Fomalhaut, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

Imaging Of Exocomets With Infrared Interferometry

by Keith CowingFebruary 22, 2023September 5, 2025

Active comets have been detected in several exoplanetary systems, although so far only indirectly, when the dust or gas in the extended coma has transited in front of the stellar […]

Hasthedust

Astronomy & Telescopes, Beta Pictoris, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Status Report

Has The Dust Clump In The Debris Disk of Beta Pictoris Moved?

by Keith CowingJanuary 21, 2023January 14, 2024

The edge-on debris disk of the nearby young star Beta Pictoris shows an unusual brightness asymmetry in the form of a clump.