Tidy close-match star system holds planetary pinball clue
A trio of planets orbiting a sun-like star has the most similar layout to our solar system yet seen. The discovery supports the idea that planets emerge from relatively flat discs of material encircling stars and, at first, orbit neatly in the same plane, just as our eight planets circle the sun. This long-held notion has recently been called into question by a haul of planetary systems with wildly skewed orbits. Read more