NASA’s Webb finds signs of Mars-sized worlds smashing together

NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope is giving astronomers a glimpse of the kinds of violent collisions that may have shaped our own solar system, including the giant impact thought to have created the Moon. By studying 21 rare “extreme debris disks” around young stars, researchers found that their dust can reveal the scale and intensity of planetary collisions. NASA’s Webb finds signs of Mars-sized worlds smashing together.

The impact likely vaporized huge quantities of rock and hurled material into space. Some of that debris eventually came together to form the Moon, where NASA’s Artemis program is returning humans, preparing for Mars, and shaping the future of space exploration. That ancient impact dramatically altered Earth.

Now, astronomers are using NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope to investigate young star systems that appear to be experiencing similarly violent events. By studying these systems, researchers can estimate how energetic the collisions were and learn more about how rocky planets form and evolve. Webb Targets Rare Extreme Debris Disks The material surrounding a star changes significantly over time.