Active galactic nuclei could be sites of massive planet formation, according to new models. Researchers suggest millions of worlds, some unusually large, may arise in the dusty discs surrounding supermassive black holes.
Barry McKernan at the City University of New York and colleagues modeled the disc of dust and gas around a typical active galactic nucleus. They found conditions that allow dust to clump into larger objects, leading to planet growth on vast scales. The disc can extend for dozens of light years, enabling this process across huge regions of space.