NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope discovered Beta Pictoris d, a third giant planet orbiting the young star Beta Pictoris, 63 light-years from Earth. The system is now only the second known to contain at least three directly imaged planets. Astronomers identified the planet through its atmospheric “barcode,” including absorption patterns from carbon monoxide, methane and water vapor, rather than relying solely on a visible point of light hidden within the star’s bright debris disk. Beta Pictoris d is estimated to have two to four times Jupiter’s mass and may orbit more than 30 astronomical units from its star, placing it beyond Beta Pictoris b but inside the debris disk’s inner edge. The planet’s gravity may help explain gaps, clumps and other unusual structures in the disk. Its discovery also shows that spectroscopy can reveal planets concealed by dust and scattered starlight while simultaneously measuring their chemistry, temperature and motion. Beta Pictoris d spent years concealed inside one of the brightest debris disks astronomers know. NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope found it not as a clean …