A new study from researchers at the University of Warwick has uncovered a fascinating case for the formation of gas giant planets like Jupiter. The research, published in Nature Communications, reveals how the evolution of the early Solar System played a key role in the formation of gas giants. The team studied the chemical signatures of ancient meteorites and found evidence of a mechanism called “disk instability” that could have helped gas giant planets like Jupiter form. Disk instability occurs when the gas and dust in a protoplanetary disk become gravitationally unstable and clump together, forming a core that can accrete gas and form a gas giant planet. The team’s findings suggest that the evolution of the early Solar System provided the necessary conditions for disk instability to occur, allowing gas giant planets like Jupiter to form.

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source: Phys.org