HD 142527
Young binary system with a circumbinary protoplanetary disk.
HD 142527, a binary system in Lupus, has a primary Herbig Ae/Be star and a companion found in 2012 that is either a red dwarf or an accreting protoplanet. Its notable circumbinary protoplanetary disk has improved planet formation models.
Quick Facts
- Variable star type
- UX Orionis variable
- Visible-light magnitude range
- 8.27 to 8.60
- Age
- 4.4 million years
- Disk mass
- 15% of the Sun
- Disk diameter
- 980 AU
Facts from the source article.
Protoplanetary disk
HD 142527 is a very young star system, only about 4.4 million years old, and it still holds onto its protoplanetary disk. This disk has a mass equal to 15 percent of the Sun and stretches 980 AU across. Within the disk, scientists have spotted eddies and vortex structures, which are shaped by two large planets. The system is key for watching how planets form and how material accretes. In early 2013, astronomers using the ALMA telescope found two major flows of matter in the system. Through gravitational pull from two giant planets, each several times more massive than Jupiter, dust and gas move from the outer disk toward the center. These flows act like pumps, pushing material inward to feed the star. The planets themselves remain hidden behind a thick gas shroud, but models suggest they exist. Japanese astronomers have also detected ice particles in the disk.
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