PHILLIPP WEBER
The outbursting star V960 Mon and what it might tell us about planet formation |
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| The formation of giant planets has traditionally been divided into two pathways: core accretion and gravitational instability. However, in recent years, gravitational instability has become less favored, primarily due to the scarcity of observations of fragmented protoplanetary disks around young stars and low occurrence rate of massive planets on very wide orbits. In this study, we discuss several observations of the young outbursting object V960 Mon. The images reveal a vast structure of intricately shaped spiral arms and large-scale interaction with its surroundings. ALMA 1.3 mm data acquired just two years after the onset of the outburst of V960 Mon detects several clumps of continuum emission aligned along a spiral arm that coincides with the scattered light structure. We interpret the localized emission as fragments formed from a spiral arm under gravitational collapse. Estimating the mass of solids within these clumps to be of several Earth masses, we suggest this observation to be the first evidence of gravitational instability occurring on planetary scales. In this talk I will discuss the significance of this finding for planet formation and its potential connection with the outbursting state of V960 Mon. |