A remarkable discovery has provided scientists with a “window into cosmic history” by revealing a distant star system that mimics our own. The system orbits AF Leporis, a young star only 24 million years old—a mere fraction of our sun’s 4.6 billion-year age.

Using the European Southern Observatory’s Very Large Telescope, researchers captured images showing a layout strikingly similar to our solar system. The AF Leporis system hosts two massive gas giants that play familiar gravitational roles:

AF Lep b: Positioned similarly to Saturn, featuring a cold and thick atmosphere.

AF Lep c: An outer giant that mirrors the gravitational influence of Jupiter.

These two planets have created two distinct debris belts, serving as counterparts to our asteroid and Kuiper belts. The gravitational forces of these giants produce stable gaps within the discs, which astronomers believe could enable the development of smaller, rocky planets in the future.

Unlike the common “transit method” used to find exoplanets, scientists used the SPHERE instrument for direct imaging. This allowed them to observe reflected light directly from the planets and measure the chemical composition of their atmospheres.

AF Leporis offers a unique opportunity to observe planetary formation in real-time. Scientists believe the migration of this “Jupiter-Saturn model” might represent a universal formula for how stable planetary systems are born throughout the universe.