Caption: This composite of two images shows the planet beta Pictoris b and a disk of material both of which orbit the young star beta Pictoris. Both are taken in infrared light. The inner image was one of the first pictures taken of a planet around another star (an exoplanet). This image was made using a technique called adaptive optics which removes the blurring effect of the Earth's atmosphere that spreads out a star's light. The star's light is then concentrated tightly enough that it can be hidden behind a blocking circle (shown here in black) called a coronagraph. The ripples around this are artifacts of the imaging process. Beta Pictoris b, a gas giant planet about twelve times the mass of Jupiter, appears as a dot above and to the left of the black circle. The outer image shows the thermal emission from the warm disk of material surrounding the young star beta Pictoris. As we are viewing this disk edge-on it appears as a line. This disk of gas and dust provided the material to form beta Pictoris b.
Credit: ESO/A.-M. Lagrange et al. credit link

Caption: 这组图像展示了太阳系外行星（系外行星）β Pictoris b 的轨道运动。这颗行星是每幅图中的亮点。行星的主星被隐藏在每幅图中间的黑圈后面。这样做是为了去掉更亮的主星，否则主星的光会掩盖行星的光。行星轨道侧面对着我们。从这个角度观察轨道，会让人觉得行星是沿着一条直线运动的。 2015年2月至2016年11月期间，β Pictoris b似乎越来越靠近它的主星。之后，这颗行星离恒星如此之近，以至于近两年都没有人看到它，之后它又再次出现在恒星的另一侧。
Credit: ESO/拉格朗日/SPHERE合作组织 credit link