Water discovered in rocky planet-forming zone offers clues on habitability

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James Webb Space Telescope observations find water for the first time in the inner disk around a young star with giant planets.

Artistic concept of the PDS 70 disk. Observations of the James Webb Space Telesc
Artistic concept of the PDS 70 disk. Observations of the James Webb Space Telescope detected water in the inner disk, where normally terrestrial planets form. Two gas giant planets carved a wide gap in the disk made of gas and dust during their growth. © MPIA

Using the James Webb Space Telescope, the MPIA-led MINDS research collaboration discovered water in the inner region of a disk of gas and dust around the young star PDS 70. Astronomers expect terrestrial planets to be forming in that zone. This is the first detection of that kind in a disk that hosts at least two planets. Any rocky planets produced in the inner disk would benefit from a substantial local water reservoir, improving the chances of habitability later on. ...

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