Free Astronomy Magazine May-June 2022

37 MAY-JUNE 2022 ASTRO PUBLISHING T his composite image fea- tures an artistic impression of the planet-forming disc around the IRS 48 star, also known as Oph-IRS 48. The disc contains a cashew-nut-shaped region in its southern part, which traps millimetre-sized dust grains that can come to- gether and grow into kilome- tre-sized objects like comets, asteroids and potentially even planets. Recent observations with the Atacama Large Mil- limeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) spotted several com- plex organic molecules in this region, including dimethyl ether, the largest molecule found in a planet-forming disc to date. The emission signaling the presence of this molecule (real observations shown in blue) is clearly stronger in the disc’s dust trap. A model of the molecule is also shown in this composite. [ESO/L. Calçada, ALMA (ESO/NAOJ/NRAO)/A. Pohl, van der Marel et al., Brunken et al.]