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Astrophysics

Direct Imaging Discovery of Giant Exoplanet Pictoris d: A Decade-Long Game of Hide-and-Seek

Ben J. Sutlieff, Markus J. Bonse, Valentin Christiaens

Featured July 12, 2026

Original Paper

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Simply

Astronomers found a new giant planet, β Pictoris d, orbiting a nearby star by carefully looking at old and new telescope pictures over 11 years, confirming it's a real planet that helps shape the star's dusty ring.

In depth
The paper reports the direct imaging discovery of a third exoplanet, β Pictoris d, in the β Pictoris system. This discovery was achieved by combining non-coronagraphic mid-infrared observations from VLT/ERIS with multi-epoch archival data from JWST/NIRCam and VLT/SPHERE over an 11-year baseline. The astrometric measurements confirm its gravitational bound status and orbital motion, revealing it to be coplanar with the inner planets and consistent with sculpting the inner edge of the debris disk.

Key Takeaways

  • 1
    The paper reports the direct imaging discovery of β Pictoris d, a new giant exoplanet, using a combination of ground-based (VLT/ERIS, SPHERE) and space-based (JWST/NIRCam) observations.
  • 2
    Astrometric analysis over an 11-year baseline confirms β Pictoris d is a gravitationally-bound companion with an orbit coplanar with the inner planets, and a semi-major axis of au.
  • 3
    Photometric analysis indicates β Pictoris d is a low-mass, mid-T type exoplanet ( M, K) with atmospheric CO absorption, making it a close analog to 51 Eri b.

Conceptual Flow

HIGH LEVEL
1
Finding a Faint Planet

Scientists combined many old and new pictures from different telescopes to see a tiny, moving light next to a bright star, proving it was a new planet.

Old Telescope Pictures
New Telescope Pictures
Combine & Clean Images
Clear Planet View
2
A New Planet's Role

The new planet is a giant gas ball that orbits far from its star, and its gravity helps shape the big ring of dust and rocks around the star.

Star with Dust Ring
Two Known Planets
Add New Planet's Gravity
Dust Ring Shaped by Three Planets

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