TW Hydrae Archives

An artist's concept of the snow line in TW Hydrae showing water ice covered dust grains in the inner disc (4.5–30 astronomical units, blue) and carbon monoxide ice covered grains in the outer disc (>30 astronomical units, green). The transition from blue to green marks the carbon monoxide snow line. The snow helps grains of dust to adhere to each other by providing a sticky coating, which is essential to the formation of planets and comets. Due to the different freezing points of different chemical compounds, different snow lines can be found at various distances from the star. Credit: B. Saxton & A. Angelich/NRAO/AUI/NSF/ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)

Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biogeochemical Cycles & Geobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Icy Worlds, Imaging & Spectroscopy, Press Release

Snow In An Infant Planetary System

by Keith CowingJuly 18, 2013September 19, 2025

A snow line has been imaged in a far-off infant planetary system for the very first time. The snow line, located in the disc around the Sun-like star TW Hydrae, […]

TW Hydrae

Snow In An Infant Planetary System

Underwater Oxygen Loss Threatens Earth’s Stability, Researchers Warn

Fire And Ice: Were Yellowstone’s Past Volcanic Eruptions And Glaciations Related?

Substrate-Agnostic 3x: Biosignatures, Technosignatures, Ecologies

Planet-moon Ejections In Close Stellar Encounters

First Study Hints Solar Storms May Alter The Weather During Martian Dust Storms