NASA's Hubble telescope sends back images of 'still-forming planet' quadrillions of miles away

NASA's legendary Hubble space telescope recently provided astronomers with a valuable look at a "still-forming" planet at a distance of more than two quadrillion miles.

Hubble in its data sent back "a rare look at a Jupiter-sized, still-forming planet that is feeding off material surrounding a young star," the space agency said in a press release this week. 

The imagery "gives us the first opportunity to witness material falling onto a planet," University of Texas astronomy Prof. Brendan Bowler said in the release. "Our results open up a new area for this research."

The planetary system "is located 370 light-years from Earth in the constellation Centaurus," NASA said.