Hubble Telescope Spots Strange, Massive Disk 40 Times the Size of Our Solar System

Hubble observations reveal a giant, turbulent planet-forming disk that may reshape theories of how planetary systems develop.

Astronomers working with NASA’s Hubble Space Telescope have captured images of the largest protoplanetary disk ever seen surrounding a young star.

Observed in visible light for the first time, the disk appears far more turbulent and disordered than expected, with streamers of material extending much higher above and below the disk than in any comparable system. Even more unusual, the longest filaments appear on only one side.

The results, published in The Astrophysical Journal, represent a major achievement for Hubble and offer new insight into how planets might form under extreme conditions, advancing NASA’s broader effort to explore the universe and our place within it.

A planet-forming disk of unprecedented scale

The object, known as IRAS 23077+6707 and nicknamed “Dracula’s Chivito,” lies about 1,000 light-years from Earth and stretches nearly 400 billion miles across. This makes it roughly 40 times wider than the span of our solar system out to the Kuiper Belt of icy bodies.

The disk is so large and dense that it blocks the view of the young star at its center, which astronomers think could be a single hot, massive star or a close pair of stars. Its sheer size already sets it apart, but its structure suggests it may also be one of the strangest planet-forming disks yet identified.

Located roughly 1,000 light-years from Earth, this protoplanetary disk, nicknamed “Dracula’s Chivito,” spans nearly 400 billion miles – 40 times the diameter of the solar system to the outer edge of the Kuiper belt of cometary bodies. Credit: NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center; Lead Producer: Paul Morris

“The level of detail we’re seeing is rare in protoplanetary disk imaging, and these new Hubble images show that planet nurseries can be much more active and chaotic than we expected,” said lead author Kristina Monsch of the Center for Astrophysics | Harvard & Smithsonian (CfA).

“We’re seeing this disk nearly edge-on and its wispy upper layers and asymmetric features are especially striking. Both Hubble and NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope have glimpsed similar structures in other disks, but IRAS 23077+6707 provides us with an exceptional perspective — allowing us to trace its substructures in visible light at an unprecedented level of detail. This makes the system a unique, new laboratory for studying planet formation and the environments where it happens.”

The playful nickname “Dracula’s Chivito” reflects the backgrounds of the researchers involved, with one tracing roots to Transylvania and another to Uruguay, where a popular sandwich is called a chivito. Seen edge-on, the disk even resembles a layered burger, with a dark central band bordered above and below by glowing layers of dust and gas.

Puzzling asymmetry

The impressive height of these features wasn’t the only thing that captured the attention of scientists. The new images revealed that vertically imposing filament-like features appear on just one side of the disk, while the other side appears to have a sharp edge and no visible filaments. This peculiar, lopsided structure suggests that dynamic processes, like the recent infall of dust and gas, or interactions with its surroundings, are shaping the disk.

“We were stunned to see how asymmetric this disk is,” said co-investigator Joshua Bennett Lovell, also an astronomer at the CfA. “Hubble has given us a front row seat to the chaotic processes that are shaping disks as they build new planets — processes that we don’t yet fully understand but can now study in a whole new way.”

A massive system that challenges formation models

All planetary systems form from disks of gas and dust encircling young stars. Over time, the gas accretes onto the star, and planets emerge from the remaining material. IRAS 23077+6707 may represent a scaled-up version of our early solar system, with a disk mass estimated at 10 to 30 times that of Jupiter — ample material for forming multiple gas giants. This, plus the new findings, makes it an exceptional case for studying the birth of planetary systems.

“In theory, IRAS 23077+6707 could host a vast planetary system,” said Monsch. “While planet formation may differ in such massive environments, the underlying processes are likely similar. Right now, we have more questions than answers, but these new images are a starting point for understanding how planets form over time and in different environments.”

Reference: “Hubble Reveals Complex Multiscale Structure in the Edge-on Protoplanetary Disk IRAS23077+6707” by Kristina Monsch, Joshua Bennett Lovell, Karl R. Stapelfeldt, Sean M. Andrews, Ammar Bayyari, Alice S. Booth, Adolfo S. Carvalho, John H. Debes, Jeremy J. Drake, Joshua W. J. Earley, Cecilia Garraffo, Garrett K. Keating, Michael L. Sitko and David J. Wilner, 23 December 2025, The Astrophysical Journal.
DOI: 10.3847/1538-4357/ae247f

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