Space & Astronomy

Evidence of giant planet found in orbit around one of our nearest neighbors

By T.K. Randall
August 13, 2025 ·  5 comments

Image: Alpha Centauri A and Planet (Artist's Concept)
Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, R. Hurt (Caltech/IPAC) / CC BY 4.0 (adapted) Situated just four light-years away in a triple star system that also happens to be the closest star system to our own, the new planet was found using the Mid-Infrared Instrument (MIRI) aboard NASA's James Webb Space Telescope.

"With this system being so close to us, any exoplanets found would offer our best opportunity to collect data on planetary systems other than our own," said Charles Beichman of NASA JPL.

"Yet, these are incredibly challenging observations to make, even with the world's most powerful space telescope, because these stars are so bright, close, and move across the sky quickly."

"Webb was designed and optimized to find the most distant galaxies in the universe.""The operations team at the Space Telescope Science Institute had to come up with a custom observing sequence just for this target, and their extra effort paid off spectacularly."

Sadly, even if the planet is definitively confirmed to exist, it is unlikely to be able to support life.

"Of all the directly imaged planets, this would be the closest to its star seen so far. It's also the most similar in temperature and age to the giant planets in our solar system, and nearest to our home, Earth," said Caltech PhD student Aniket Sanghi.

"Its very existence in a system of two closely separated stars would challenge our understanding of how planets form, survive, and evolve in chaotic environments."

Source: NASA.gov | Comments (5)

Tags: Planet