They decided to point the telescope at the nearest planetary disk, which surrounds a star named TW Hydrae.

Jupiter and the other solar planets represent the last generation, created as the planetary disk was dissipating and leaving more stable conditions.

The Nebula was discovered by William Herschel on February 15, 1786, who likened its appearance to a planetary disk.

"This is the first infrared image where an entire inner planetary disk is clearly visible," Dr. Werner said.

Then the sterilizing impact that created the Moon was as late as 180 Ma after our planetary disk originated (ado).

Even though most planetary disks can form planets, observations show that intense stellar radiation should have destroyed any proplyds that formed near the Trapezium group, if the group is as old as the low mass stars in the cluster.

The telescope also discovered in April 2005 that Cohen-kuhi Tau/4 had a planetary disk that was vastly younger and contained less mass than previously theorized, leading to new understandings of how planets are formed.

Recent observations by the Hubble Space Telescope have shown proplyds and planetary disks to be forming within the Orion Nebula.

However, the results suggest a limb darkening, an effect which presents cooler temperatures near the edge of the planetary disk and higher temperatures near the center.

Janeway stared at the image on the screen, the narrow rhomboid hanging apparently motionless against the planetary disk, its rusty colors even uglier in contrast to the lush world behind it.