Canadian scientists confirm new solar system

Canadian scientists have found more evidence that a massive planet eight times the size of Jupiter is in fact partof another solar system.

A team of researchers, led by University of Montreal astrophysicist David Lafrenire, confirmed that the huge sphere is orbiting a sun-like star, evidencethat the two bodies are related. The relationship is important because Lafrenire and his two co-authors estimatedthe distance between the planet and its sun at300 times the approximately 150 millionkilometres of our earth to itssun.

While the size of the new planet is impressive, what concerns scientists is in fact how far the sphere is from its host star. That is because, according to researchers, the newly-discovered planet represents the smallest body that orbits its own sun at such a great distance.

The solar system is known as 1RXS J160929.1-210524 (or 1RXS 1609 for short).

Distance changes thinking

When Lafrenire and his colleaguesfirst discovered the new celestial body back in 2008, they needed to make further observations to ascertain whether the planet and its sun were related and not randomlyplaced in space.

In an article in an upcoming edition of the Astrophysical Journal, Lafrenire and University of Toronto astronomersRay Jayawardhana and Marten van Kerkwijksaythey have confirmed that, in fact, the planet is rotating around its nearest star.

The team used high-resolution adaptive optics technology at the Gemini Observatorysite in Chile.

"Back in 2008 what we knew for sure was that there was this young planetary mass next to a young, sun-like star," said Lafrenire

Equally interesting, theextreme distance between planet and star now gives scientists a different perspective on the origins of celestial bodies.

"[This]could be telling us that nature has more than one way of making planets. Or, it could be hinting at a violent youth when close encounters between newborn planets hurl some siblings out to the hinterlands,"Jayawardhana said.