A groundbreaking discovery was recently made by Irish scientists using the European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope (VLT) in Chile. The team captured images of a young star and its surrounding disc, providing strong evidence of a new planet being born.

The discovered planet is believed to be a gas giant, much larger than Jupiter, forming within a vast disc of dust and gas around its parent star. The images released by the European Southern Observatory show an exceptionally structured disc extending 130 astronomical units from the star, indicating active planet formation.

Researchers observed a bright ring and gap in the disc, suggesting the presence of a planet shaping its surroundings. The team, led by Dr. Christian Ginski from the University of Galway, included postgraduate students Chloe Lawlor, Dan McLachlan, Matthew Murphy, and Jake Byrne.

This international collaboration involved experts from various countries, highlighting Galway's leading role in space science. The exact location of the discovery is not disclosed yet, but astronomers worldwide are closely monitoring this young stellar system.