LONDON: Astronomers have observed a star giving birth. They have pinpointed a distant sun where a new planet is being created around it.

The discovery, a first for astronomers, has been hailed by scientists who believe it will shed crucial light on the frequency of solar systems throughout the galaxy.

Researchers have recently pinpointed scores of planets in orbit round stars, raising hopes of finding life elsewhere in the universe. But the exact mechanism of the formation of planets has remained a mystery.

However, observations of the star KH15D by a group of students using a simple telescope have raised hopes of a breakthrough. “This is going to add a whole new dimension to astronomy,” said Nasa physicist Steven Maran.

The astronomers, from Wesleyan University, Connect-icut, spotted KH15D — a young star the size of our sun, sited in the constellation Monocero — six years ago when a routine survey showed it was behaving oddly. For 32 days it shone brightly. Then it dimmed dramatically for the next 16.

“Basically, the star is winking at us,” said project leader Prof William Herbst. “Something is passing between it and Earth. However, it cannot be another star or a large planet. That would produce much briefer eclipses. These last for more than two weeks.”

Herbst concluded that a collection of smaller objects — dust grains, rocks and asteroids, strung out in a great clumpy arc — must be orbiting KH15D.

As these swathes are exactly what astronomers would expect to find in a system giving birth to planets, a major programme of observations of KH15D was launched. —Dawn/The Observer News Service